The Fargo, ND driver returns to home just as he and Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing find consistency

By Nick Graziano

GRAND FORKS, ND (Aug. 25, 2022) – You can see a difference with Donny Schatz.

It’s in his swagger. It’s in his interviews. And, most notably, it’s in his stats with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

Since July – in the last 18 races – Schatz has managed a 5.3 average finish, including a win at Weedsport Speedway and his 11th Knoxville Nationals title. In the 18 races prior, that average was 8.3 with no wins.

The 10-time Series champion of Fargo, ND and his Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing team will now carry that momentum into two of Schatz’s best tracks – also his home tracks – River Cities Speedway (Friday, Aug. 26) and Red River Valley Speedway (Saturday, Aug. 27).

Of active full-time Series drivers, Schatz has the most Series wins at both tracks with 12 at River Cities (the last coming in 2019) and six at Red River Valley (the last coming in 2021).

So, while already a threat at the two North Dakota circuits, Schatz now enters having finally found a comfortable package with the Ford FPS 410 engine, allowing he and the team to perfect their consistency.

“We’re able to work on the race car again,” Schatz said. “You know, the last… I don’t even know the timeline. We’ve been busy trying to get the motors to where I feel they need to be. We’ve been so focused on it that you don’t even work on your race car. Not that we don’t work on it, it’s just you focus on where you need to get the motors to be. That’s not a quick easy fix overnight.”

The FPS 410 debuted in late 2019 and has been an ongoing project since, trying to perfect the new engine from scratch. Its process was hindered by the pandemic in 2020, creating an issue with parts availability.

While Schatz still managed to pick up multiple wins with the engine, along with team-owner Tony Stewart and former teammate Kerry Madsen, the feel he needed from it wasn’t always consistent. With TSR scaling back to one team this year, solely focused on Schatz’s World of Outlaws efforts, progress emerged with the CARQUEST/Advance Auto Parts #15.

“It’s been a lot of years in the making,” Schatz said. “There’s been a lot of heartburn. There’s been a lot of swear words. There’s been a lot of things. But it’s also pretty rewarding to sit here right now and say that motor has won the Knoxville Nationals. It’s won a few races. We’ve had some great runs and some wins but to sit here and win one of the biggest races of the year, I’m pretty excited about it.

“There are all of us who have contributed to the downfalls of it. To start on something from paper with an idea from this guy to on a CAD program to whittle it out here. Then, everybody dealt with COVID. That changed the dynamics of where we got our parts made or where Ford got their parts made.”

While they’ve been finding success with it lately, Schatz added there’s still room for perfection.

“I don’t think we’re going to brag about how great it is day in and day out because we’ve gone to a lot of different racetracks and its always performed well on the bigger tracks,” he said. “It is getting to where I feel like it is good for me. That doesn’t mean it is going to be good for someone else. Obviously, Tony has had multiple cars in the past and one guy has liked it and one guy hasn’t. But I guess for us, as long as we can get back on the consistency wagon, which we have. We’re qualifying well. We can race better. And like [at Knoxville], we put ourselves back a ways and were able to come forward. I can tell you, it’s a fine line some nights. It gets really fine.”

Recently, Schatz finished fourth and sixth, respectively, during the Jackson Nationals at the Jackson Motorplex – a 4/10-mile track. This weekend will see the Series return to a couple of smaller tracks as River Cities is a 1/4-mile and Red River Valley is a 3/8-mile.

Schatz already has a win on a 3/8-mile this year at Weedsport and finished third at River Cities when the World of Outlaws visited the Grand Forks, ND track in June. Since the World of Outlaws started racing at River Cities in 2007, Schatz has finished worse than fourth two times – both seventh-place finishes – and hasn’t finished worse than fourth there since 2011.

With 22 races remaining this season before a champion is crowned during the World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte (Nov. 2-5), Schatz currently sits fifth in points, 170 points behind championship leader Brad Sweet. While still in contention, Schatz acknowledged 170 points is a large hole to climb out of in 22 races.

“I’ve really got a different outlook on the championship at the point we’re at,” he said after winning the Knoxville Nationals. “We’ve dug ourselves a huge hole. We’ve dug out of holes before, but we’ve been in a lot better position. We’ve built back consistency, which is important. I don’t know if it will be enough to run for a championship, but I think we’ll be able to chip away at it.

“But we don’t race any different whether it is for a championship or not for a championship. I don’t anyway. I race the same against [my competitors] whether we’re 10th or the first race or the last race of the season. I think that’s the difference with the Outlaw guys. They race that way all the time, 100 percent.”

While you may see a difference in Schatz from how he was earlier in the year, there’s been no change in his drive to win.

He’ll continue that this weekend for the 2nd Leg of the Northern Tour at River Cities Speedway, Friday, Aug. 26, and for the Duel in the Dakotas at Red River Valley Speedway, Saturday, Aug. 27. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

Daytona International SpeedwayDaytona Beach, Florida August 27, 2022

NASCAR CUP SERIES REGULAR SEASON FINALE: DAYTONA

In February, Chevrolet drivers and teams of the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) took on Daytona International Speedway to not only kick-off the 2022 season, but make the competition debut of the Next Gen Camaro ZL1. A manufacturer-leading 14 wins in 25 races later; the series heads back to the “World Center of Racing” to bring the regular season to a close with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday, August 27. Daytona International Speedway has hosted 150 races for NASCAR’s premier series since its inaugural event in 1959. Within that time span, Chevrolet has recorded a manufacturer-leading 48 victories at the famed Florida venue, including 21 in the track’s summer race. The 2.5-mile, high-banked, tri-oval first hosted the NCS regular season finale in 2020, where Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron not only captured his first career NCS win, but also a playoff berth for his No. 24 Chevrolet team after entering the race only four points above the cutline.

THE TWO FINAL PLAYOFF SPOTS GO TO…

160-laps around the high banks of Daytona International Speedway will determine the final two drivers that will complete the NASCAR Cup Series playoff field. Heading into one of the most unpredictable race weekends of the season; seven drivers from three different Chevrolet teams can breathe a sigh of relief, already securing their spots in the playoff field with a win:  Chase Elliott, No. 9 A SHOC Camaro ZL1 – 2022 NCS Regular Season ChampionPlayoff Rank: 1st Points Standings: 1st Victories: 4 (Dover, Nashville, Atlanta 2, Pocono)Stage Wins: 5; Top-Fives: 10; Top-10s: 17 Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1Playoff Rank: 2ndPoints Standings: 2ndVictories: 2 (Auto Club, Watkins Glen)Stage Wins: 3; Top-Fives: 10; Top-10s: 13 Ross Chastain, No. 1 Jockey Camaro ZL1Playoff Rank: 3rd Points Standings: 5thVictories: 2 (COTA, Talladega)Stage Wins: 5; Top-Fives: 10; Top-10s: 14 William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1Playoff Rank: 5thPoints Standings: 10thVictories: 2 (Atlanta 1, Martinsville)Stage Wins: 3; Top-Fives: 4; Top-10s: 5 Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Camaro ZL1Playoff Rank: 9thPoints Standings: 13th Victories: 2 (Road America; Indianapolis Road Course)Stage Wins: 2; Top-Fives: 7; Top-10s: 10 Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Freeway Insurance Camaro ZL1Playoff Rank: 14thPoints Standings: 12thVictories: 1 (Sonoma)Stage Wins: 2; Top-Fives: 6; Top-10s: 10 Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1Playoff Rank: 16thPoints Standings: 11thVictories: 1 (Las Vegas)Stage Wins: 1; Top-Fives: 3; Top-10s: 10 While a win stands between the rest of the field and the final playoff spot; a handful of superspeedway talents from the bowtie brigade may be below the cutline, but are top contenders for the win and one of the final playoff positions. Five active Chevrolet drivers have a Daytona NCS win to their name, four of which are on the outside looking in and a win could punch the final ticket to the playoffs:  Justin Haley – (July 2019)Erik Jones – (July 2018)Austin Dillon – (February 2018)Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – (July 2017)

ELLIOTT NAMED 2022 NCS REGULAR SEASON CHAMPION

One title has already been secured prior to the NASCAR Cup Series regular season finale race weekend at Daytona. For the first time in his NCS career, Chase Elliott has been crowned the 2022 NCS Regular Season Champion. After heading into the Watkins Glen race weekend just four points shy, Elliott went on to clinch the title at the conclusion of stage one of the race. Along with the crown, Elliott and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports will be granted an additional 15 playoff points to start the 10-race stretch to the championship.

“Congratulations to Chase Elliott and the entire No. 9 Camaro ZL1 team on winning the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season championship,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance and Motorsports. “He has delivered consistent results all season. Chase, crew chief Alan Gustafson and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports crew are working together as one team, as they build momentum heading into the playoffs.” The 2022 season will mark Elliott’s seventh consecutive appearance in the NCS playoffs. The 26-year-old Georgia native has made it to the Championship 4 round the past two season, with 2020 bringing him his first career NCS championship title. Through 25 races, Elliott leads the series in wins (4); top-10s (17); laps led (688); and playoff points (25).

CHEVROLET SWEEP AT THE GLENIt was an all-Chevrolet victory lane at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International last weekend, with reigning NASCAR Cup Series Champion Kyle Larson performing the weekend sweep.

The doubleheader race weekend started out with the NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS), where the 30-year-old California native took over the driving duties for the No. 88 JR Motorsports Camaro SS for the weekend, marking Larson’s second NXS start of 2022. In the closing laps of the race, Larson was running third when contact between the leaders provided Larson with the opportunity to power the JR Motorsports-prepared machine to the lead. Holding off road course master AJ Allmendinger to the end, Larson took the checkered flag to capture his first NXS road course win. The victory was the ninth of 2022 for JR Motorsports, tying the record of wins scored in a single season for the Chevrolet team.

Sunday’s action for NASCAR’s premier series started under a lightning delay, with impending weather forcing teams to take the green flag under wet track conditions. Once underway, pit strategy became the name of the game all day, with teams varying between a two- or three-stop approach from atop the pit box. A late-race caution setup the field for a five-lap dash to the finish, led by Hendrick Motorsports teammates Elliott and Larson. Taking the final restart of the race, Larson made a pass for the lead for the first time of the race and never looked back, becoming a back-to-back NCS winner at the 2.45-mile upstate New York road course circuit.

Larson’s NCS victory – his second of 2022 – gave the Camaro ZL1 its manufacturer-leading 14th NCS triumph of the season. Chevrolet has now recorded the win in 15 of the past 16 NCS road course races, while also extending its streak to 11 consecutive on left- and right-hand circuits in NASCAR’s premier series. Larson led the bowtie brand to four top-five and six top-10 finishes. Five different Chevrolet teams were represented in the top-10, making it the third time this season that at least five different Chevrolet teams placed in the top-10 of the final running order of a single race.

ANOTHER CHECKERED FLAG FOR THE CAMARO SS

Kyle Larson and the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet team’s win at Watkins Glen marked Chevrolet’s 15th trip to victory lane in 22 NASCAR Xfinity Series races, bringing the winning percentage for the Camaro SS to 68%. Of those wins includes 12 of the past 14 races, dating back to Noah Gragson’s Talladega win in April.  Part one of the Daytona doubleheader marks four races to go in the NXS regular season. In the 61 NXS races held at the 2.5-mile Florida venue, Chevrolet or its fellow GM brands have won 51 times. Chevrolet drivers have taken the past two Daytona NXS wins, dating back to Justin Haley’s victory in the August 2021 race, ultimately securing his playoff spot. The track’s most recent NXS winner came from series rookie Austin Hill, who took the season opener in February, his full-time NXS debut with Richard Childress Racing.

BOWTIE BULLETS

·       NASCAR Cup Series victories by current Chevrolet drivers at Daytona International Speedway:     Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – one win (July 2017)     Austin Dillon – one win (February 2018)     Erik Jones – one win (July 2018)      Justin Haley – one win (July 2019)     William Byron – one win (August 2020) ·       Of the 150 appearances made in NASCAR’s premier series at the “World Center of Racing”, Chevrolet has recorded a manufacturer-leading 48 points-paying wins, with 21 coming during the summer NCS race.  ·       Chevrolet has won 94 times at the 2.5-mile Florida superspeedway across all three NASCAR National Series, making Chevrolet the winningest manufacturer at Daytona International Speedway in NASCAR history. ·       Chevrolet has recorded 52 pole wins Daytona – with 22 in the summer NCS race – to lead its manufacturer competitors. Of the nine active drivers that are NCS Daytona pole winners, six come from the bowtie brigade: Chase Elliott (3), Alex Bowman (2), Kyle Larson (1), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (1), William Byron (1), Austin Dillon (1).  ·       11 of the 23 drivers who recorded their first career NCS win at Daytona International Speedway came in the track’s summer race, three of which are active Chevrolet drivers (William Byron – 2020); (Justin Haley – 2019); (Erik Jones – 2019). Haley, who needs a win to secure the final NCS playoff spot, leads the series in average finishing position in the Daytona summer race with a 3.5.  ·       With Kyle Larson’s win at Watkins Glen, Chevrolet has recorded wins in 15 of the last 16 NASCAR Cup Series road course races, while also extending the streak to 11 in a row. ·       Kyle Larson led Chevrolet to four top-fives and six top-10s at Watkins Glen, with five different Chevrolet teams represented in the top-10. This marks the third time this season that Chevrolet has had at least five different teams place in the top-10 in a single race. ·       Heading into the Daytona race weekend, Chevrolet’s Chase Elliott has already officially clinched the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Championship. 2022 will mark Elliott’s seventh consecutive appearance in the NCS playoffs, with the 26-year-old Georgia native making it to the Championship 4 the past two seasons. In 25 races, Elliott continues to lead the series in wins (4); top-10s (17), laps led (688) and accumulated playoff points (25).  ·       Chevrolet heads into the NASCAR Cup Series season finale with a manufacturer-leading 14 NCS wins in 25 points-paying races. The bowtie brand also continues to lead its manufacturer competitors in NCS top-fives (59), top-10s (109), laps led (2,946) and stage wins (21). ·       Seven Team Chevy drivers have combined 21 NASCAR Cup Series stage wins:       Tyler Reddick 2 – Fontana x2      Alex Bowman 1 – Las Vegas      Ross Chastain 4 – Las Vegas, Darlington, Charlotte, Pocono, Richmond      William Byron 3 – Phoenix, Atlanta, Talladega      Daniel Suarez 2 – COTA, Charlotte      Chase Elliott 3 – Martinsville x2, Charlotte, Atlanta x2       Kyle Larson 3 – Bristol, Sonoma, Pocono ·       Chevrolet leads the driver points standing in both the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Chase Elliott remains in the top position in the NCS standings with a 134-point lead over second-place and HMS teammate Kyle Larson; and AJ Allmendinger continues to lead the NXS standings by 61 points. Chevrolet also remains atop both the NCS and NXS manufacturer points standings. ·       With its 40 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver Championships, and 828 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title of winningest brand in NASCAR.

FOR THE FANS

·       Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Daytona International Speedway. ·       Fans can check out an assortment of Chevrolet vehicles including: Tahoe Z71, Blazer Premier, Silverado 1500 Crew ZR2, Silverado 2500HD Crew LTZ, Corvette Z51, Camaro ZL1, Traverse Redline Premier. ·       Also making a special appearance in the Team Chevy Racing Display this weekend at Daytona will be the first-ever, all-electric Chevrolet Blazer RS. ·       At the Chevrolet Display, fans can also view Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Camaro ZL1 show car. Team Chevy Driver Appearances at the Display: Friday, August 26·       AJ Allmendinger & Landon Cassill: 1:00 p.m.·       Justin Allgaier & Noah Gragson: 1:15 p.m.·       Josh Berry & Sam Mayer: 1:30 p.m. Saturday, August 27·       Austin Dillon: 3:30 p.m.·       Alex Bowman: 3:55 p.m.·       William Byron: 4:10·       Chase Elliott: 4:45 p.m.·       Justin Haley & Daniel Hemric: 5:15 p.m. Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation:  Friday, August 26: 12 p.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday, August 27: 12 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.   Tune In: NBC will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 27. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  USA Network will broadcast the NASCAR Xfinity Series Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday, August 26. Live coverage can also be found on the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

QUOTABLE QUOTES

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 JOCKEY CAMARO ZL1Has it hit you yet that you’re going to be running for a Cup Series championship?“Honestly, no. I know we are preparing to win races and have been working really hard all season. It’s the Cup Series, and its wild to me that we’re going for a championship. When I look back to the races I was running in the Truck Series in 2012, and I was starting and parking, it’s wild to think that as recently as 2018 I was still doing some start and parks – the truck race at St. Louis. It humbling to think just a few years ago I was doing that just to get to the track.” When you’re doing autograph sessions and you see a big crowd, do you look out and think ‘wow, this really did happen?’“I just laugh. I can’t believe anyone would want to come listen to me, or get an autograph. I just laugh.” How does it feel to have someone come up to you and say they want to get involved in racing because of you?“It feels good. I got into racing because Matt Martin, Mark Martin’s son, would race at my local track and that is who I wanted to be like. There’s avenues across the country at local tracks that kids can get into go karts, flat karts, champ karts, shifter karts, and then once you get above 10 years old now, there’s full size cars that you can race against other kids. It’s something that kept me out of trouble. Even if I never raced in NASCAR, from 12-18 it gave me that passion that I didn’t find in soccer. It gave me the desire to come home and work on my racecar with my dad and grand dad, and friends and family.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BREZTRI CAMARO ZL1 You’ve had success at Daytona International Speedway. How do you negotiate staying out of the wrecks throughout the race so that you can be in contention at the end?“It’s tough. It’s a game of putting yourself in position. I call it high-speed chess because you know at some point in time you’re going to be vulnerable. You hope that someone doesn’t take advantage of that too much and cause a big wreck. It’s one of those things where you are constantly moving and trying to guess the flow of the pack. I think the best place to be is in the front most of the time, but it’s impossible now with the way we race to keep yourself up there for the entire race. You see guys do it for long periods of time. Denny Hamlin has been pretty amazing at putting himself in the right position as of late. I’m going to do my best this time around to put ourselves in position.” KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1Larson on how the team attacks Daytona International Speedway with so many points and playoff implications: “It’ll be interesting. It’ll be a wild race – maybe not in the first two stages – but definitely in the last stage when drivers will be going for it. In our case, there are four or five of us close to second place in points. The No. 5 team can’t forget about that. We need to go chase points to try and stay up front all race long to finish second in regular season points and get those 10 extra bonus points. Our goal will be to get to the finish and beat those guys behind us in points.” CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1Daniels on earning points Saturday night to possibly secure second in the regular season standings: “We certainly want to get all the points we can and we’ll try to be smart in the first two stages to be in position to get points. It’s really going to be about staying clean. A lot of guys are going to try to get that win to get themselves in the playoffs. We need to be smart about positioning ourselves in the field and hopefully call a good strategy. Would be nice to have a good finish and good points in all the stages to just get what we can.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 A SHOC CAMARO ZL1 Elliott on what the feeling is as the team prepares to run for another championship: “The feeling is good, honestly. Our group, amongst our team, is just such low drama and we just put our work in, we go to the track, we give it our best effort and we go home. If it went good, great. If it didn’t, we’re going to try harder to do a better job when we go back. That’s really all you can control. So that’s really where our mindset is every week whether we’ve had a good year, a bad year, a mediocre year, a good month or a bad month, coming off a win or a loss. That is something about our team. I’m super privileged to have a group of guys that have their priorities so straight that performance (is what matters) and putting things first that need to go first ahead of things that don’t matter in order to be successful. I feel like our team is just solid and we look forward to going to battle with each other every weekend, and regardless of the result, we’re ready to re-rack and try harder to do better the next week.” Elliott on superspeedway racing:“When I sit back and I look at the plate races, yes there are a lot of things that need to go your way, but we see the same guys up front winning those races more times than not. To me, Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin are two guys that I see putting themselves in position to win those races as consistently as one can. I think that it’s just a balance that you really have to try to find and it’s one that I can’t say that I’ve really found quite as good as those guys to have odds as good as them. You’ve got to have a knack for it. You’ve got to enjoy it and embrace it. To me, that’s kind of step one of figuring it out is just embracing it. I feel like I’ve embraced it. I don’t know about the figuring it out part, but it’s been embraced.” DANIEL HEMRIC, NO. 16 CIRKUL CAMARO ZL1“Heading to Daytona, I am excited to have a fresh start after Watkins Glen. Our guys at Kaulig Racing have been working super hard to prepare our superspeedway cars. I’m also excited to be back in the cup car with Kaulig Racing after a couple really good runs together earlier in the season, including the Daytona 500. Our awesome partner, Cirkul, will be onboard for both races, which is extremely special. Hopefully we can stay clean until the end with our teammates.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 Byron on the last race before the playoffs: “I’m excited to get to Daytona (International Speedway) this weekend. This is the first year that we have been solidly locked into the playoffs with multiple wins, meaning there’s less stress heading into this race compared to normal. That doesn’t mean, though, that we are going to take it easy by any means. There’s still playoff points on the line this weekend, and with how much of a wild card Daytona can be, any extra points we can get before the first round (of the playoffs) gets underway, the better. Daytona is a track we’ve always been fast at, and we were for sure fast in the (DAYTONA) 500 earlier this year. We just need to do a good job of managing the details we can and put ourselves in position to battle for the win at the end and carry some good momentum into Darlington for the Round of 16.” RUDY FUGLE, CREW CHIEF, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 Fugle on what he expects at Daytona: “The No. 24 team has always seemed to have speed at Daytona (International Speedway) in both last year’s car, the Next Gen car as well as the Hendrick Motorsports organization as a whole over the years. I feel like this weekend should be no different. We were fast in the DAYTONA 500 and could really make moves it seemed like. The main difference this time, though, is that it will be much warmer now then it was at that time. That means handling will play a bigger factor than it did in February. We won’t have any practice time but I feel like we have a good idea of what to expect. It will just be about adapting early on and putting ourselves in a position to be there at the end.” JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 31 LEAFFILTER GUTTER PROTECTION CAMARO ZL1 “Daytona has always been a great track for me. It’s super special that Matt and Chris are letting me drive their race car. I always enjoy that Friday night Xfinity Race. It’s also cool to bring a new sponsor to the sport (DaaBIN Store), and it’s a huge deal for them to be at a big race like Daytona. Having a good team, strategy and spotter are vital. Everything just needs to sync up to be able to pull off a win at Daytona. It’s a pretty cool opportunity for Matt to have four shots at getting a trophy. I am excited for it, as well as competing in the race on Friday night in our No. 31 Celsius Camaro in a race that I have won in the past.” TY DILLON, NO. 42 THORNTONS CAMARO ZL1 “I’m excited to go to Daytona this week with our Thorntons Camaro ZL1. Superspeedway racing is always exciting, you never know what the result can be, and you’ve got to put yourself in a good position to be at the end of the race. I’ve done well at that in the past, so it is a great opportunity to get ourselves into the playoffs.” ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1You are in a must win situation heading into this weekend’s race at Daytona. How do you feel about your chances? “We’re focused on Daytona. We’ve been putting a lot of work into our Daytona car to get it better, get it ready and prepped the way we want too. I feel like our superspeedway stuff has been good, we just need to take advantage of it. We’re definitely focused on winning and making our way into the Playoffs.”  How do you approach a race at Daytona where there can be a lot of chaos to be there at the end with a chance to win? “Earlier this season at Talladega, we kind of just pushed hard all day and we were up front and had a shot to win. I hope to have a similar race like that. Just be up front and avoid the chaos for the most part. We’ll see. It’s different every week, every race on the superspeedways. You have to be mindful of how everyone’s running and judge it from that.” You’ve won at Daytona and have run well at Talladega, so that has to be good for your confidence. What is the mindset heading into the race this weekend? “It’s confident. I know we can go do it, I know we can run well there, and I know we can have a shot to win. We just have to execute and hope we’re staying out of trouble and avoid a lot of the chaos and be up there and have a shot. We’ll see. It’s going to be tough for sure to just be there at the end to have a chance, but I feel good about our speed we’re going to have for sure.”   Do you think you will be able to find friends to push you or help you throughout the race? “I think we’ll have a fast car for sure, so I think there’s going to be people who will want to work with us just because of that. I think speedway’s get a little separated from the other races of the year because of who’s fast and who has a chance. If we’ve got a fast car, I think we’ll find some friends throughout the race.” RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER / NOS CAMARO ZL1“I feel good going into Daytona. I feel like we have unfinished business there. We were able to lead the Daytona 500 and with six laps to go, we were battling for the win until we got wrecked. We still have something to finish there.”  ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 Bowman on making the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year with Hendrick Motorsports: “Obviously, I am excited to be back in the playoffs again. It’s no secret that we have had our struggles this summer, but I know we have a lot of smart people at the shop working really hard to get us out of the summer slump we have been in. Two years ago, we struggled to make the playoffs and then had one of the best playoff runs I have ever had. We all know what we are capable of. It’s time to go out there and execute and try to win Hendrick Motorsports’ 15th championship.” GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 Ives on heading to Daytona: “Daytona (International Speedway) is a place that you can get caught in someone else’s mess pretty quickly. So for us it’s all about doing the fundamentals – bringing a fast No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and continue to work on the ability to be aggressive. I think you have to be a little aggressive at these speedway-style racetracks, be able to make moves quickly and have confidence in the car in order to have success. We are going to continue to work hard and execute on Saturday.” NOAH GRAGSON, NO. 62 BEARD MOTORSPORTS / SOUTHPOINT CAMARO ZL1 You recently announced that you’ll compete in the NASCAR Cup Series fulltime next year with Petty GMS Racing. With the slate of Cup Series races you’re running this year, do you feel like you’re in a much better position to succeed next year because of the seat time you’re getting this year with the NextGen car?“I think the opportunity with Beard Motorsports and Kaulig Racing have helped. I know how raw I was getting into the Cup car to start the season and how much I’ve learned since then with more experience. That’s definitely been a big help. And with these guys having a full season under their belt this year, if I were to hop in cold turkey next year, it’d definitely be a lot more challenging. But just getting the understanding of the car and how they feel and the level of competition, all of that has helped.” You now have 10 career NASCAR Cup Series starts under your belt, all with the NextGen car. What is it like to drive that car compared to the Xfinity Series car you race fulltime?“There are differences just with the car itself. I’ve noticed you have to drive it a lot straighter than the Xfinity car, but I’ve gained more and more experience and more and more confidence each and every race. We’re a little behind just because these guys get to race them each and every week. Every gain that I’ve made during each of my 10 starts this year, they’ve been making them every week and can re-adapt to that week in and week out. It’s a little bit challenging, but I feel like I’ve gotten a better feel for it than I had at the beginning of the season.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1With a playoff spot secured, what is your strategy Saturday night?“We are going down there to win both stages and then win the race. That’s always our strategy. We want trophies. If you do that the points will always take care of themselves.” Do you think this team can make a deep playoff run? Are you a championship team?“I think we are. I think we are. The beautiful part is that we get stronger as we go. If you were asking me that question three months ago, I was going to tell you, man, we have work to do. We have the potential, but we have work to do. Two months ago I was starting to believe more. A month ago I would say, heck, yeah. Right now, of course we are here. We just keep getting stronger. I guarantee you in a month from now we’re going to be stronger than right now. We’re going to keep working.”

Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics Manufacturers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 40First title for Chevrolet: 1958Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15) Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021 Drivers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 33First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)Most Recent: Kyle Larson (2021) Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021 Event Victories:Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)                2022 STATISTICS:                                                                                                    Wins: 14Poles: 7Laps Led: 2,946Top-five finishes: 59Top-10 finishes: 109Stage wins: 21Tyler Reddick (Fontanax2)Alex Bowman (Las Vegas)Ross Chastain (Las Vegas), (Darlington), (Charlotte), (Pocono), (Richmond)William Byron (Phoenix), (Atlanta), (Talladega)Daniel Suarez (COTA), (Charlotte)Chase Elliott (Martinsvillex2), (Charlotte), (Atlantax2)Kyle Larson (Bristol Dirt), (Sonoma), (Pocono) CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 828 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 730Laps led to date: 244,282Top-five finishes to date: 4,197Top-10 finishes to date: 8,664                                                                                                          Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:                    General Motors: 1,162           Chevrolet: 828           Pontiac: 154           Oldsmobile: 115           Buick: 65            Ford: 817                                                                    Ford: 717           Mercury: 96           Lincoln: 4            Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467           Dodge: 217           Plymouth: 191           Chrysler: 59            Toyota: 167

August 25, 2022

In his debut run with the Wood Brothers, Harrison Burton drove the No. 21 Mustang into the lead in the season-opening Daytona 500 only to be collected in a crash that sent him airborne and prematurely ended a promising start.

As Burton and the DEX Imaging team return to Daytona International Speedway for Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400, the goal is to pick up where they left off in February.
 
“Our first goal for the weekend is to run up front like we did the last time at Daytona, but this time keep all four tires on the ground,” said crew chief Brian Wilson. “The first trip to Daytona was a great start to the year for the No. 21 team. 
 
“We qualified in the top 10, raced near the front in our Duel and led laps in the 500. 
 
“The wreck in the 500 was unfortunate, but we showed that we can compete at superspeedway races.”
 
Saturday night’s race is the 26^th and final event in the Cup Series regular season, the last chance for teams not already assured of a Playoff berth to win a race and join the 16 drivers who will begin the chase for the Cup Series championship.
 
Wilson said that despite the team’s struggles at times, the No. 21 DEX Imaging team isn’t conceding anything yet.
 
“As the regular season winds down we know that we’re still building and looking for more consistency in our program,” he said. “But this weekend presents a great opportunity to compete for win No. 100 for the Wood Brothers organization. 
 
“We’ll look to work with our manufacturer teammates to keep Ford at the front on Saturday night.”

Zach Daum Leads Championship Chase at Halfway Point

DAVENPORT, IA – August 24, 2022 – After a short two-week break, the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota returns to racing this weekend with another new track in another new state.

Davenport Speedway in Davenport, IA welcomes the mighty midgets, in conjunction with POWRi, to town this Friday and Saturday, August 26-27, as part of the Quad Cities 150 presented by Hoker Trucking. The doubleheader creates an exciting pairing for race fans with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models on the docket at the 1/4-mile venue.

BUY TICKETS HERE (Fri-Sat)

Let’s take a look at what to watch for this weekend on DIRTVision.com:

FIVE-FOR-FIVE: The Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota will again put its incredible parity streak on the line this weekend with the hopes of a sixth and possibly seventh different winner through the inaugural campaign. The most impressive part is arguably how historic each of the five individual wins has been.

Gavan Boschele, 15, of Mooresville, NC, will forever be the first winner in Xtreme Outlaw history thanks to his May 24 win at Millbridge Speedway. Taylor Reimer, 22, of Bixby, OK, followed suit the next night by becoming the first female to win a National Midget race. She was quickly backed up by Jade Avedisian, 15, of Clovis, CA, who dominated Jacksonville Speedway, making them the first back-to-back female dirt winners in a national dirt racing series. Chance Crum, 25, of Snohomish, WA, finally earned his first-career National Midget win earlier this month at I-55, and then Michael Pickens, 39, of Auckland, NZ, used a thrilling last-lap pass to become the first driver to win with USAC, POWRi, and Xtreme Outlaw.

RETURN TO RACING: If all goes according to plan, fans in attendance at Davenport Speedway this weekend will witness an emotional return to racing for 17-year-old Daison Pursley, his family, and Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports. The Locust Grove, OK native has been sidelined for more than nine months since he sustained a potentially life-altering injury last November while racing in Arizona.

It’s been a long road to recovery with rehab, doctors, and specialists all across the country, but the light at the end of the tunnel is beginning to show. Pursley recently dabbled in Micro Sprint racing and quickly found his way back to Victory Lane, and now he’s ready to climb back into the National Midget ranks. If approved, he will be back in his Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports #9 for his debut with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota.

LEADING THE WAY: Through the opening five races, nobody has shown as much consistency as Zach Daum in the Bundy Built Motorsports #9M. The Pocahontas, IL native remains winless with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota, however, he still owns a 60-point advantage with another five nights remaining in the $10,000 championship chase.

Daum, a three-time champion in the POWRi National Midget League, has finished no worse than sixth this season with Xtreme Outlaw He’s the only driver with three podium finishes, four top-five results, and five top-10 showings, all coming in his first full season with the Mooresville, NC based operation. Like many, this weekend will be his debut at Iowa’s Davenport Speedway as he looks to finally add a win to his 2022 resume.

WAITING IN THE WINGS: Currently behind Daum in the point standings is Brenham Crouch, 16, of Lubbock, TX, Bryant Wiedeman, 17, of Colby, KS, and Kyle Jones, 29, of Kennedale, TX.

Crouch (-60 points) is up to a 7.4 average finish highlighted by a runner-up at Jacksonville aboard his Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports #97. Wiedeman (-78 points) has rattled off four-straight top-10 finishes in the Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports #01, peaking in fourth after leading laps at Millbridge. Jones (-136 points) has found more and more speed in the Trifecta Motorsports #7U, scoring a season-best sixth at I-55 after contending for the win.

MOUNCE IS STOUT: After missing the Xtreme Outlaw debut at Millbridge in May, Mounce/Stout Motorsports has shined since following the Series through Jacksonville and I-55 with youngsters Jacob Denney and Chase McDermand behind the wheel. Both drivers have topped Qualifying groups, won Heat Races, and led Feature laps in limited action, proving they’re on the cusp of finding Victory Lane.

Denney, 17, of Galloway, OH, has finished no worse than eighth through his three starts with podium efforts of third at Jacksonville and second at I-55 highlighting his short tenure. He already earned his first-career USAC win earlier this summer at Lincoln Park (IN) and now looks to add an Xtreme Outlaw score to his list.

McDermand, 22, of Springfield, IL, has fought his share of bad luck and peaked with a sixth-place finish in his last outing at I-55. The two-time POWRi National Midget League winner will try to beat his teammate to the punch as each chase their first Xtreme Outlaw win this weekend.

MAC IS BACK: With his two-race suspension – DQ from May 25 win at Millbridge – in the rearview mirror, Cannon McIntosh returns to action with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota this weekend. The Bixby, OK native is currently one of the hottest Midget drivers in the world, enjoying a career year with 11 victories to his credit.

The 19-year-old pilot of the Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports, Crescent Gearwrench, Spike/Toyota #08 has thrived in POWRi National Midget League competition, scoring nine wins and 16 top-10 finishes through 17 starts. With Davenport’s doubleheader being held in conjunction between Xtreme Outlaw and POWRi, McIntosh will certainly be a threat for the $4,000 paydays both nights.

THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE

Friday & Saturday, August 26-27 at Davenport Speedway in Davenport, IA

On the Internet
Xtreme Outlaw Series
Twitter – @Xtreme_Outlaw
Instagram – @XtremeOutlaw
Facebook – Facebook.com/XtremeOutlawSeries.WRG
YouTube – Youtube.com/WorldofOutlaws
DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month

CURRENT STANDINGS (5/10 Nights):
1. 9M-Zach Daum (1,062 PTS); 2. 97-Brenham Crouch (-60 PTS); 3. 01-Bryant Wiedeman (-78 PTS); 4. 7U-Kyle Jones (-136 PTS); 5. 25K-Taylor Reimer (-155 PTS); 6. 26-Chance Crum (-167 PTS); 7. 72J-Sam Johnson (-250 PTS); 8. 84-Jade Avedisian (-261 PTS); 9. 71K-Dominic Gorden (-283 PTS); 10. 19M-Ethan Mitchell (-344 PTS).

TOYOTA FEATURE WINNERS (5 Drivers):
1 win – Gavan Boschele (Mooresville, NC) / Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian #5
1 win – Taylor Reimer (Bixby, OK) / Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian #25K
1 win – Jade Avedisian (Clovis, CA) / CB Industries #84
1 win – Chance Crum (Snohomish, WA) / Rudeen Racing #26
1 win – Michael Pickens (Auckland, NZ) / Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports #08

FEATURE LAPS LED (9 Drivers):
39 Laps – Cannon McIntosh
30 Laps – Jade Avedisian
21 Laps – Bryant Wiedeman
20 Laps – Chance Crum
14 Laps – Chase McDermand
11 Laps – Jacob Denney
10 Laps – Gavan Boschele
10 Laps – Karter Sarff
5 Laps – Michael Pickens

WHITZ QUICKTIME AWARDS (4 Drivers):
2 QuickTimes – Michael Pickens
1 QuickTime – Taylor Reimer, Kyle Larson, Hayden Reinbold

HEAT RACE WINS (14 Drivers):
4 Heat Wins – Brenham Crouch
3 Heat Wins – Cannon McIntosh
2 Heat Wins – Bryant Wiedeman, Kyle Jones, Chase McDermand
1 Heat Win – Nick Drake, Ryan Timms, Jace Park, Taylor Reimer, Joe B. Miller, Jacob Denney, Michael Pickens, Karter Sarff, Cade Lewis

K1 LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (7 Drivers):
2 LCS Wins – Ethan Mitchell
1 LCS Win – Kyle Larson, Brent Crews, Kaylee Bryson, Chase Briscoe, Ethan Mitchell, Dominic Gorden, Bryant Wiedeman

TJ FORGED HARD CHARGER AWARDS (4 Drivers):
2 Hard Chargers – Bryant Wiedeman
1 Hard Charger – Dominic Gorden, Rylan Gray, Zach Daum

PODIUM FINISHES (11 Drivers):
3 Podiums – Zach Daum
2 Podiums – Jacob Denney, Michael Pickens
1 Podium – Gavan Boschele, Nick Drake, Taylor Reimer, Jade Avedisian, Brenham Crouch, Ethan Mitchell, Chance Crum, Karter Sarff

TOP 10 FINISHES (29 Drivers):
5 Top 10s – Zach Daum
4 Top 10s – Brenham Crouch, Bryant Wiedeman
3 Top 10s – Taylor Reimer, Jacob Denney
2 Top 10s – Nick Hoffman, Ethan Mitchell, Brent Crews, Kyle Jones, Chance Crum, Karter Sarff, Michael Pickens
1 Top 10 – Gavan Boschele, Nick Drake, Sam Johnson, Carson Kvapil, Dominic Gorden, Cannon McIntosh, Kaylee Bryson, Rylan Gray, Chase Briscoe, Jade Avedisian, Jake Neuman, Joe B. Miller, Kaidon Brown, Jace Park

2022 XTREME OUTLAW MIDGET SCHEDULE & WINNERS:
No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)
1. Tues, May 24 / Millbridge Speedway / Salisbury, NC / Gavan Boschele (1)
2. Wed, May 25 / Millbridge Speedway / Salisbury, NC / Taylor Reimer (1)
3. Sun, June 26 / Jacksonville Speedway / Jacksonville, IL / Jade Avedisian (1)
4. Fri, Aug. 5 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Chance Crum (1)
5. Sat, Aug. 6 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Michael Pickens (1)

Michelin GT Challenge at VIR
VIRginia International Raceway, Alton, VA
2 p.m. EDT Sunday, August 28, 2022
Live Coverage on CNBC, NBC Peacock, Radio Le Mans and IMSA.com

Acura NSX GT3 Evo22
Sunday’s two-hour, 40-minute Michelin GT Challenge at VIR is the second of two IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship stand-alone events for the GTD Pro and GTD classes. The first GT-only race took place at Lime Rock Park in July.

For 2022, Acura’s IMSA GTD effort in the IMSA WeatherTech Sprint Cup – the eight non-endurance rounds of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – will be headed by Rick Ware Racing’s #51 Acura NSX GT3 Evo22.

The RWR driver lineup includes Ryan Eversley, the 2018 SRO Touring Car American TCR champion and IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race winner in 2021. He is partnered by Aidan Read, a 2021 GTD race winner in IMSA at Watkins Glen last year. The pair also joined forces last year when Read engineered Eversley’s NASCAR Cup Series debut, with RWR, at Road America.

The #51 Rick Ware Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 driven by Read and Eversley finished third at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, the first podium result for the duo and RWR, in the team’s first year of IMSA GTD competition.

Acura DPi
IMSA’s Prototype category is not a part of the IMSA weekend at VIR, but the Acura ARX-05s will return to the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for the following round, the 10-hour Petit Le Mans, Oct. 6-8 at Road Atlanta near Gainsville, GA.

Propelled by victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, plus four additional race wins, Acura will clinch the 2022 IMSA Manufacturers’ Championship with the waving of the green flag at Road Atlanta. It will be Acura’s third DPi Manufacturers’ title in five years competing in the category.

The Drivers’ and Team’s DPi championships will be decided between the two Acura teams in the series: Meyer Shank Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing.

With four wins this season, the WTR duo of Filipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor hold a narrow, 19-point lead over fellow Acura team MSR and drivers Tom Blomqvist and Oliver Jarvis, who won at the Rolex 24 in January and have five second-place results.

Where to Watch
Flag-to-flag coverage from VIRginia International Raceway will be available on CNBC starting at 2 p.m. EDT Sunday, with live streaming on NBC Peacock.

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

Acura Motorsports social media content and video links from the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

Inside Line Promotions – WATSONVILLE, Calif. (Aug. 23, 2022) – Dominic Scelzi captured his first-ever Johnny Key Classic title last Saturday at Ocean Speedway.

Scelzi bested 40 other competitors to set quick time in qualifying before he advanced from fourth to second place in a heat race. He then won the dash to land the pole position for the Sprint Car Challenge Tour main event.

“I knew with how we ended on Friday we had a car to beat on Saturday,” he said. “I hoped that translated to being good. We started on the pole of the 35 lapper and led all 35. On one restart I chose the outside and (Shane) Golobic slid me into turn one and I crossed him over, but that was the only time I was challenged. The track was pretty slick. From like Lap 6 to Lap 20 it was slick from the bottom to the edge of the track with a narrow cushion on both ends. It was a really good track. I felt the bottom had slowed down enough that I chose the top for a restart. We went green and he was able to stay side by side with me before sliding me into turn one. We got right back by him and another five laps or so the track started rubbering up.”

The triumph was Scelzi’s seventh of the season overall and his first with the Sprint Car Challenge Tour. He now owns six career series victories, which ranks second on the all-time wins list.

Scelzi kicked off the weekend the previous night at the quarter-mile dirt oval, where he timed in fifth quickest overall. He advanced from third to second in a heat race, which lined him up on the inside of the fifth row in the A Main.

“We went out late and it was hard to get a good qualifying lap in,” he said. “That put me starting third in the first heat race and I should have won it, but ran out of time. I slid the leader on the last corner, but came up a bit short.

“The track was really hooked up and rough in the feature. It was really hard to pass the first 10 laps or so. I tried to stay around the bottom and away from the holes at the top. The last 10 laps we really came on. We got to third and tracked down first and second from a straightaway back. On the last lap we were all in traffic when first and second went to the top. I went to the bottom. I got inside of Bud (Kaeding) for second. We went into turns three and four and the leader decided to go low. Bud went high and ripped around us both. I went to the extreme bottom and we were three wide at the finish. It felt like I was in a Cars movie.”

The top three drivers finished within 0.206 seconds of each other with Scelzi rounding out the podium. His six positions gained were tied for the second most.

Scelzi plans to race this Friday at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif., and Saturday at Placerville Speedway in Placerville, Calif.

QUICK RESULTS –

Aug. 19 – Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif. – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 2 (3); Feature: 3 (9).

Aug. 20 – Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif. – Qualifying: 1; Heat race: 2 (4); Dash: 1 (1); Feature: 1 (1).

SEASON STATS –

34 races, 7 wins, 20 top fives, 26 top 10s, 30 top 15s, 31 top 20s

UP NEXT – 

Friday at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif., and Saturday at Placerville Speedway in Placerville, Calif.

BATAVIA, OH (August 23, 2022) – The stars of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series return to Port Royal Speedway, August 26th-27th for the 3rd Annual Rumble by the River. This year’s crown jewel will boast an event record $50,000 payday, up from $30,000 in 2021. A strong contingent of local and regional standouts are expected to battle the elite in dirt late model racing at the half-mile oval known as “The Speed Palace.” Friday’s preliminary program includes Dirt Draft Hot Laps, Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and two $5,000-to-win A-Mains for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. On Saturday, the on-track action includes Dirt Draft Hot Laps, Heat Races (which will be lined up based on cumulative points from Friday’s preliminary A-Mains), B-Mains, and the 50-lap, $50,000-to-win, Rumble by the River A-Main. The Mid-Atlantic Modifieds will serve as support with a complete program each night. All gates will open at 4:00 PM ET each night. A driver’s meeting will take place at 5:30 PM ET on Friday, followed by Hot Laps at 6:00 PM ET, and racing at 7:00 PM ET. On Saturday, a Dirt Racing Outreach Service is scheduled for 2:00 PM ET, with on-track action beginning at 6:30 PM ET with Hot Laps.

The Xtreme Outlaw Midgets presented by Toyota return to action during the Davenport Speedway doubleheader

By Nick Graziano

DAVENPORT, IA (Aug. 22, 2022) – Jade Avedisian had a specific goal in mind this year.

In her second season of running National Midget races, the 15-year-old from Clovis, CA wanted to win. And she did, in a big way, at Jacksonville Speedway with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota, becoming the first women to see the checkered flag in a National Midget event.

However, that wasn’t the full extent of her goal.

“My goal is five (wins),” she said. “But I’m already halfway through the season, so I need to figure out how to pick up four more wins. Just winning, really.”

She’ll have two more chances to win big when the Xtreme Outlaw Midgets – in conjunction with POWRi – make their debut at Davenport Speedway (in Davenport, IA) for the Quad Cities 150, Aug. 26-27 – paired again with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series. Both nights will pay $4,000 to win for the Midgets.

She’s never raced at the quarter-mile Iowa track before, but that’s not hindering any confidence of being able to win the marquee event in her Toyota-powered CB Industries #84. She’s already won at a quarter-mile this year – at Jacksonville. Also, Avedisian said she’s felt more comfortable on smaller tracks this year.

“Confidence is big in racing, knowing I already have one win just keeps you going, even if you have a bad weekend,” Avedisian said. “I’m just really excited for Davenport and hope to be able to get another one.”

She couldn’t pin-point what’s made her better at smaller track this year, other than enjoying the challenge they present. She credited her improvements of mastering her entries, managing her wheel spin and using the cushion to her advantage. On the bigger tracks, she said she feels like she’s more “along for the ride.”

By not running for points, Avedisian has been able to jump freely between the Xtreme Outlaws, POWRi and USAC Midget events. Between the three series she’s picked up six top-five finishes and 12 top 10s in 31 starts.

With the Xtreme Outlaws, she was unable to qualify for the Series’ first-ever two events at Millbridge Speedway but then, in her first Xtreme Outlaw Feature start, won at Jacksonville, besting the stout field by more than a second. In the last two Series events at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 she finished 15th and 14th, respectively.

While she shares a moment in history with Taylor Reimer, being the first ever back-to-back female winners in a national dirt racing series, Avedisian said she didn’t think too much about that part. She just wants to win. No matter what accolades come with it.

To see Avedisian and the rest of the best dirt midget drivers in the country during the Quad Cities 150 at Davenport Speedway, CLICK HERE for tickets.

NASCAR CUP SERIESWATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONALGO BOWLING AT THE GLEN  Chevrolet’s 11th Consecutive NCS Road Course Win ·       The win is Larson’s second NCS victory of 2022; his second at Watkins Glen International; and his 18th career victory in 284 NASCAR Cup Series starts. ·       Chevrolet has now recorded wins in 15 of the past 16 NASCAR Cup Series road course races, including a streak of the past 11. ·       Chevrolet drivers took four of the top-five, six of the top-10 in final running order. ·       Larson’s victory marked the Camaro ZL1’s 14th win in 25 NCS races this season. ·       The winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history, Chevrolet now has 828 all-time NASCAR Cup Series victories.

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (August 21, 2022) – One thing that remained consistent during NASCAR’s annual trip to Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International was seeing the reigning NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Champion, Kyle Larson, in victory lane. After driving the No. 88 JR Motorsports Camaro SS to victory lane in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race at the 2.45-mile, 7-turn New York circuit, Larson went on to sweep the weekend; piloting his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 to the team’s second win of 2022.   “Proud of our guys,” said Larson. “Good to get another win here at Watkins Glen and get some more bonus points going into the Playoffs, which we haven’t had many of those this year. Hopefully this will build on some momentum and we can keep racking up some more points.” Defending his race winning title at Watkins Glen didn’t come without a fight. After waiting out a lengthy lightning delay at the start of the race, Larson helped lead the field to the green alongside his Hendrick Motorsports’ teammate and pole sitter Chase Elliott. With pit strategy playing a vital role in track position throughout much of the race, the 30-year-old California native worked his way back up to the top-10 to complete stage two, positioning the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet team up front to battle for the win in the final stage. With a late-race caution in the closing laps, Larson lined up on the inside of Elliott for the restart with just five laps remaining. Taking the green for the race to the finish, Larson was able to power his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 to the lead and never look back, crossing the finish line first for the 18th time in his NCS career.  “I knew that was my only opportunity to get by him (Chase Elliott),” said Larson. “I felt like our cars were pretty equal today. Had a lot of fun after the green flag cycle trying to chase him down.” Larson’s victory extended Chevrolet’s impressive streak of wins on the series’ road course circuits, with the bowtie brand now sitting at 11 consecutive NCS road course triumphs. Even more, a Chevrolet-powered machine has taken the win in 15 of the past 16 NCS road course races, dating back to Chase Elliott’s win at Watkins Glen in 2019. The winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history, Chevrolet has now recorded wins in 14 of the series’ 25 races thus far this season, with momentum on the bowtie brand’s side as the end of the NCS regular season is now just one week away.  Larson’s victory was celebrated by a strong Chevrolet showing at the conclusion of the 90-lap race, with Chevrolet drivers taking four of the top-five and six of the top-10 in the final running order. Larson’s win came after having to hold off fellow California native and notable road course master, AJ Allmendinger, who drove the No. 16 Action Industries Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing to a runner-up finish. After clinching the 2022 NCS Regular Season Championship title during stage one of the race; Chase Elliott went on to lead a race-high 29 laps en route to a fourth-place finish for his No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Camaro ZL1 team. Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Princess Cruises Camaro ZL1, was fifth; Tyler Reddick, No. 8 KCMG Camaro ZL1, was seventh; and Erik Jones, No. 43 FOCUSfactor Camaro ZL1, rounded out the Team Chevy top-10.  The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next Saturday, August 27, at Daytona International Speedway with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at 7 p.m. ET. Live coverage of the NCS regular season finale can be found on NBC, the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1; and CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 – Press Conference Transcript:  THE MODERATOR: We are joined by crew chief Cliff Daniels and our winning driver Kyle Larson.We’ll open it up for questions. Q. Kyle, post-race AJ said it sucked losing to you twice. What did it feel like to beat him twice on a road course?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, obviously when he came out in second behind me, you get nervous again. I hadn’t really seen him much all day so I didn’t know how good he was. But I felt like my car today was much better than my car yesterday, so I had more confidence out in front of him today than yesterday, too. Was able to gap him pretty well through the esses. I haven’t looked at data, but matched him pretty well everywhere probably but the bus stop, maybe a little bit in turn six. But I felt like seven and the esses I could get away from him. That helped me protect from him getting close enough to dive bomb into there.I figured day two he would be a little bit more aggressive behind me than yesterday. Thankfully our car was good enough I could gap him. Q. Cliff, did your strategy plans change after the rains came?CLIFF DANIELS: Not necessarily. We had kind of looked at it two different ways with rain mileage or in the dry. You could really two-stop the race. It was more of a fuel race than a tire race. We kind of had a fuel number we wanted to hit either way. What is interesting is what the 17 did, where they were one of the first ones to take dry tires, made up a lot of time that way. They pitted so early I knew they were going to have to make a third pit stop to the field. They actually did a great job. I’m curious to know the details of how they executed it, but I think they did fuel only before the end of stage one, they cycled through ahead of us. That’s a pretty interesting way to do it. Credit to them for kind of seeing that. I believe all four of the Hendrick cars, we had seen and communicated very similar that we wanted to two-stop the race either way. Our plan the whole time was to two-stop the race. We knew with starting in wet conditions naturally you can get a dry line. There’s going to be the excitement of guys really going fast once they put on dry tires. It’s a lot to ask to make three pit stops against guys that can manage doing it in two. Unfortunately we fell off a little bit hard at the end of our stint on the wet tires, which put us a little more vulnerable to the field. He did a good job on some of the restarts getting back up there. We knew our car had pace with dry tires. I know that was a long-winded answer to what you asked, but that was kind of the scope of our day. Q. Kyle, obviously contact with Chase there going into turn one. What was your perspective on that? Do you feel you have to have a conversation with Chase after the way things played out?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, I had the restart before, I kind of got put in a bad spot because he had the dominant position on me with the nose ahead. Every time I was in the right lane yesterday in Xfinity, I was in the same spot, I would always get pinched into the curb. A lot of times I got passed by the time we got to turn two. I figured it was probably going to be the last restart of the weekend. I told myself if I had a nose ahead of him before we got to the braking zone, I was going to have to try my best to maintain that, not let him get a nose ahead of me, pinch my corner off, end my chance of winning. I had a good restart. I got in there hot. Did what I had to do to win. Again, I’m not necessarily proud of it, especially with a teammate, but I feel like I had to execute that way to get the win. Q. You’ve had contact this year already going back to Auto Club, which was your other win. What do you feel like your relationship is with Chase generally speaking?KYLE LARSON: I feel like we’ve been in a good spot. We were able to talk after the incident at Auto Club, moved on past that pretty quickly. I haven’t seen an interview. I haven’t seen anything about Chase today. I think at Auto Club it was more of an accident. Today it was hard racing at the end on a restart. I’m sure it will warrant some sort of conversation, but I don’t know. So we have a quick week this week with testing at Martinsville, Saturday night race at Daytona. It’s a much shorter week. Look forward to getting back on track. Q. Kyle, some conversations can happen about this. How do you get it all straightened out so you’re on the same page going into the Playoffs?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, I don’t know. I haven’t talked to anybody really yet. We’ve just been taking pictures and stuff. Yeah, I’m sure I’ll have a conversation with Jeff Gordon and Rick and probably Jeff Andrews. I’m sure Chase, as well. I think it’s risky taking the left lane here at Watkins Glen. It’s definitely the preferred lane as the leader, but as each restart gets further on in the race, whether it be at the end of the stage or end of the race, you’re putting yourself in a vulnerable position to get used up on exit. You’ve seen it a lot of different times in the years past. You take note of that. Like I said, I did what I felt like I had to do to get the win and get some bonus points that we kind of desperately need as we head on into the Playoffs. Q. Yesterday you said your goal is to get to second in points by the end of the season. Winning a race does a lot towards that. How confident are you right now in terms of getting more wins once you get into the Playoffs?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, our cars have been really fast all year. I feel like all of Hendrick Motorsports has been really quick. Chase’s team has done an extremely good job all year, compared to the field really, of executing. I think that’s just really the one area that we’ve tried to focus on for a while now. It’s easy to say; it’s sometimes hard to do while you’re racing. If we can continue to have days like today where we execute as good as we could, called a great race with pit strategy, we did a great job on our pit stops, every restart I think we moved forward, and we brought a fast race car again to the track. If we can continue to do that as we go onto these next 11 weeks, I’m pretty confident that we can go contend for another championship. Q. At one point you were racing with Kimi. What was that like?KYLE LARSON: That was cool. By the time I got to him, he was really struggling. He looked like he was really loose in front of me. I was able to make quick work of him. It’s just really cool for him to step out of his comfort zone and come play with us stockcar racers. It was more than just Kimi. The international drivers racing today was pretty cool. I think I passed every one of them at some point. It was fun watching them up ahead of me being really aggressive. They’re as good as it gets when it comes to heavy braking, stuff like that. I could watch people up in front of them try to make a move on them, they wouldn’t be able to make the pass. That’s just their experience playing part today, and it was fun to be a spectator at points in the race. Q. AJ was complimentary do you after the race. He said he believed you’re the most bad-ass racing driver on the planet right now. What does that make you feel?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, no, it’s cool. I’ve always had a lot of respect for AJ. He does a really good job in the Xfinity Series, but I feel like he’s one of if not the most underrated guys in the NASCAR, any series in NASCAR, of my career that I’ve had in stockcars. You can just tell when drivers are really good. For AJ to put himself in position every single time on a road course, whether it be any series that he’s in, is amazing. As well as do as good of a job as he does in the Xfinity Series on ovals. I feel he really carries that car a lot of times. You can compare him to his teammates, and he’s always outrunning them. I feel like that’s kind of a way to judge how good a driver is. There’s no doubt in my mind if he was in equipment equal to mine, he would be winning races frequently. He continues to get better. I love getting the chance to race him. It was a lot of fun to have him in my mirror these last two races, try to keep my nerves down enough to keep off the best road racer. Q. How do you make sure this doesn’t carry over to the Playoffs where Chase is going to race you hard back as you’ve raced him? Is there any concern about that, coming down to a key moment, he has this memory in his head?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, I don’t know. Honestly I think in my position you have to expect not getting any breaks cut my way. You have to weigh all that stuff out as you roll around under caution. That is all stuff that has crossed my mind. I don’t know. I think and I hope it will be fine, but we’ll see. I didn’t end his day today, but I did probably take a win from him. Yeah, I don’t know. I mean, I think we’ve raced well in the past. The next 11 weeks, 10 weeks in the Playoffs, there’s more than just me to worry about. But, yeah, I definitely know there may be moments throughout the Playoffs where I feel like we’re around each other a lot because we’re pretty equal on track and stuff. Yeah, there may be moments.In my position, you kind of have to accept it. Q. Cliff, it’s obviously been six months since you won a race. For a team that won 10 times last year, how tough is it to manage that?CLIFF DANIELS: It’s been tough. A lot of that I’ve got to say starts with me, right? I’m the leader of the team, I help coach him, the pit crew, the road crew, all the guys at the shop. There’s a lot of different areas I have to cover. I’m very I would say happy and pleased with the prep that we put into putting a fast race car on track, how to look at our strategy, all the different things until we get to the moment. In the moment, for whatever reason or another, all summer we’ve kind of been plagued like one little mistake here or there, a pit call or a pit stop, a restart or some little thing that has impacted our day, kept us from getting a good finish. I take a lot of that to heart. We have a lot of very honest conversations within our team of what we have to do to make sure when you know you have one of the best drivers if not the best driver in the world, all the talent in our team that we had last year, all of the folks at Hendrick Motorsports giving us great cars and engines, all the things that they have given us, it really does boil down to execution. I will say the Next Gen car has presented a completely different challenge for executing a race, managing tire falloff, strategy, a lot of things we wanted it to bring about. I certainly own the share of mistakes that I’ve made in that. We continue to kind of keep a tally in a healthy way to say here was a missed opportunity, here is what that looked like, here is the supporting evidence to look for the next time to not make that same mistake again. Those are conversations that we have with him, within our team, of just how to be better and execute better. Very proud of the team today. Proud of him today because we needed kind of that token of confidence to say we brought another fast race car to the track this week, can we keep it up front, execute the race, have a shot at the end. If you have a shot at the end, you get a chance to capitalize, he did a great job today. Very thankful for that. Q. Cliff, I’ll ask you this. How concerning was the weather? First off the excess water before they stopped the race, then all the downhill stuff.CLIFF DANIELS: A little bit concerning. COTA knocked the edge off, the edge of uncertainty, the nerves around what racing a Cup car in the rain would look like. I know the Next Gen car is different, but it is still a 3500 pound stock car. Still have all the rain tires, all the things you have to go through. Not a very high level of concern because we have a little bit of experience with it. He’s raced Xfinity in the rain. I’ve been a part of Xfinity races in the past in the rain. It was more about the question surrounding tires and fuel, which would be the same questions around executing a dry race. I think in hindsight NASCAR did a good job of how they managed the start of the race. The rain tires seemed to do a good job, like we knew they would. Goodyear had done their homework on the tire. Once it dried out, our tires got punished, which is typically what we see. I really didn’t see anything kind of out of what we expected. I don’t know if that helps answer. Q. Cliff, looking at next week to Daytona, I was curious about the strategy games. A lot more strategy coming into effect with the summer race at Daytona than maybe Talladega or Daytona in February. How much was that strategy changed with the Next Gen car?CLIFF DANIELS: I think it’s going to be very important as we’ve seen at the speedways. Certainly within the OEM groups, the guys do a good job of working together. I believe in our Chevrolet group; we’ve still got some non-winners that could make the Playoffs. You certainly want to help those guys any time we can. Another big part of the strategy for us, when we’ve been aggressive on trying to get to the front, calling aggressive strategy, we get caught up in things that happen at a speedway race. Talladega in the spring, we called probably one of the calmest races, he would admit, drove one of the calmest races we have in a long time and stayed in the top four almost all day long. Every speedway race is going to play out different. We’re going to try to be smart, be a good teammate to the Chevrolet guys, Hendrick guys how and when we can. Certainly we have to protect ourselves and make sure we have a shot at the end. Q. What was it like from a driver’s perspective when it was pouring big-time? Was there water dripping in the race car at the time?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, I mean, compared to what I remember of COTA last time, I don’t remember there really being any water inside the car last year. This year, yeah, there was a lot of like just dripping water inside the car. No, like, running water, which was nice (smiling). Yeah, visibility, had we gone green while it was raining, probably would have been difficult like it was at COTA. It was nice they brought us down pit road and kind of waited for the rain to stop and blew that layer of thick wetness off the track. Visibility I didn’t think was that bad when we took the green and the track was drying up fairly quickly, too. I thought I’d be a lot better in the wet than I was. I was a little bit bummed and glad that it did dry up as quick as it did because I was struggling in the wet. I’ll have to look at data on why that is, how I didn’t manage it better because my tires I think were ate up at the end of that run where other guys that did the same strategy as us, but I was struggling bad and getting ate up. Yeah, no, it was fun. I mean, it’s fun to get to do it every now and then. I thought the cars handled fine in the rain, too. Q. If Chase had gotten the lead from you, how aggressive do you think you probably would have got in there trying to get that win?KYLE LARSON: I don’t think I would have gotten close enough to him. We were pretty equally matched. Dirty air was still a thing today. In the esses, even when I would get a decent exit off of one, if I was within three or four car lengths of him or anybody into the esses all day, I was just really tight and kind of binding the car up with my steering wheel, not able to run as much throttle as normal. That doesn’t allow me to stay close enough to him in the bus stop. He was really good in the bus stop, really good in the carrousel. I don’t think I would have ever gotten close enough to him to even try to put pressure on him and make a mistake or try and pass him. Q. As we’ve gotten to the close of the regular season, how concerned have you been not just about winning again but entering the Playoffs without a lot of the Playoff points? Has that been a serious concern of your team?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, I mean, I don’t know if we’ve necessarily talked about it a whole lot. I think it’s definitely probably been on all of our minds. Last year I think I had like 40-something points going into the Playoffs. Let’s see, this year I’ll probably have, if I run second in the regular season, like 23 depending on how next weekend goes.Yeah, wins are important to get those bonus points. I haven’t won as many stages as I did last year, nearly as many stages as last year. All those bonus points help. Even as I went into the Playoffs last year, was winning a lot, I think we entered the Round of 8 almost a full race ahead of the cutoff. That gives you a lot of comfort. Not that you have total comfort, but… Yeah, so winning today, getting some bonus points, everything helps. Everything will benefit you as you go on as the Playoffs start. Yeah, would like to have a good weekend next week and lock up that second place in points and start the Playoffs I would think as the second-seeded driver probably. Q. On the other side of that, is it also sort of not really good, but with the way that the season has been so wide open, aside from Chase, nobody has really pulled away, does that give you a good feeling that you can still be in a good spot?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, yeah, definitely. In years past there’s been, like, two or three guys that win all the stages, seem to win all the races, they kind of can distance themselves a little bit. This year it’s, like, there’s been no consistent guy up front. I feel like all the Playoff points have been evenly spread.For me, who hasn’t felt like we’ve done a good job, we’re really still in a good spot on points, compared to our competition. So yeah, hopefully as the Playoffs come along, we can win some more stages, win some more races. Obviously with winning races you advance to the next round. Even when you do that, you want to win stages and races to benefit yourself as you move on into the next round. It was good to get experience with points last year in our back pocket, but we aren’t there right now so we need to try and get as many points as we can.

NASCAR CUP SERIESWATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN Elliott Looking For Second Career NCS Championship

·       With one race remaining in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season, Chase Elliott and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 team has officially clinched the 2022 NCS Regular Season Championship. ·       This marks Elliott’s first NCS Regular Season Championship title in his seventh full-time season in NASCAR’s premier series. ·       The 2022 season will mark Elliott’s seventh consecutive appearance in the NCS playoffs. ·       Chevrolet – the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history – has a manufacturer-leading 33 NCS Driver Championships and 40 NCS Manufacturer Championships.

DETROIT, Mich. (August 21, 2022) – While one race still remains to complete the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) playoff field, Chase Elliott is one step closer to battling for his second championship title in NASCAR’s premier series. At the track that delivered Elliott his first career NCS win in 2018, the 26-year-old Hendrick Motorsports driver is leaving Watkins Glen International as the 2022 NCS Regular Season Champion. A familiar face on top of the points standings through most of the season, Elliott entered the race weekend with a strong 116-point lead over second-place Ryan Blaney. Only needing a 61-point advantage at the end of upstate New York race weekend, Elliott was able to clinch the coveted NCS Regular Season Championship title one week early.  “Congratulations to Chase Elliott and the entire No. 9 Camaro ZL1 team on winning the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season championship,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance and Motorsports. “He has delivered consistent results all season. Chase, crew chief Alan Gustafson and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports crew are working together as one team, as they build momentum heading into the playoffs.” Elliott and the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 team has proven to be a championship contender throughout arguably one of the most unpredictable seasons in NASCAR history. In 25 races thus far, Elliott leads the series in wins with four, top-10 finishes (17), laps led (688) and accumulated playoff points (25). While his first win of 2022 at Dover Motor Speedway solidified his berth into the NCS playoff field, it was the summer stretch that the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 team became a championship threat. Elliott drove to a career-best and series-best streak of five consecutive top-two finishes, which began with his victory at Nashville Superspeedway (June 26, 2022). Within that time span, the 2020 NCS Champion collected three victories and two runner-up finishes, setting the Chevrolet driver up to cruise towards his first NCS Regular Season Championship in his seventh full-time season in the series.  Heading into the NCS regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway, a manufacturer-leading seven Chevrolet drivers have claimed spots in the 16-driver NCS playoff field by virtue of a win, including: all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers, Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, William Byron and Alex Bowman; and first-time NCS winners Ross Chastain, Daniel Suarez and Tyler Reddick. With 25 races now complete, the bowtie brand has taken the NCS season by storm; leading its manufacturer competitors in wins (14), top-fives (59), top-10s (109), laps led (2,946) and stage wins (21).  Chevrolet – the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history – is heading into the playoffs looking to make it a three-peat in NCS Driver Championship titles. Starting with Elliott’s first career NCS Championship in 2020; Kyle Larson and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 team took the bowtie brand to back-to-back NCS Driver Championship titles in 2021. Also sitting as reigning NCS Manufacturer Champions, Chevrolet also currently sits atop the NCS manufacturer standings in pursuit of a series-leading 41st title.  The 2022 regular season for NASCAR’s premier series will come to a close next weekend with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Under the lights on Saturday, August 27, the famed 2.5-mile Florida superspeedway will officially set the 16-driver NCS playoff field. Live coverage of the 400-mile race can be found on NBC, the NBC Sports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

August 21, 2022

Burton and his Cup Series peers took the green flag on a wet track riding on rain tires after showers delayed the start of the race for nearly two hours.

Burton, who qualified 30^th for Sunday’s 90-lap run on the 2.45-mile Watkins Glen International track, spun in the opening laps, pitted for tires and fuel on Lap 11. 
 
After the track dried and teams switched to standard tires, he ended the second Stage in 25^th place.

As teams employed various pit strategies, Burton moved up to 18^th place in the opening laps of the race’s third segment before making a scheduled green-flag stop at Lap 53.

Returning to the track outside the top 30, he worked his way up to 28^th place. 

Burton and the No. 21 team now head to Daytona International Speedway for Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400, the 26^th and final race of the Cup Series regular season.

 

• Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) driver Matt Hagan captured his 48th career No. 1 Qualifier position with his Mopar 85th Anniversary-themed Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car at the 40th annual Lucas Oil National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals then drove to a quarterfinal performance on race day at Brainerd International Raceway
• Hagan leaves the Minnesota event second in the Funny Car championship standings as the team prepares for the final event of the regular season and the prestigious Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals 
• TSR pilot Leah Pruett qualified her Mopar 85th Anniversary dragster sixth for eliminations at Brainerd International Raceway and despite an early exit remains in a three-way battle for a top-five position in the Top Fuel championship battle with one event remaining before the playoffs begin
• Cruz Pedregon qualified his Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the top-five for eliminations for the ninth time this season, had a clean first round pass but was unable to advance, dropping to eighth in the Funny Car standings

August 21, 2022, Brainerd, Minnesota — Carrying the Mopar 85th anniversary livery on his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car at the 40th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) driver Matt Hagan captured the No. 1 Qualifier position for the fifth time this season then drove to a quarterfinal finish in the penultimate event of the regular season at Brainerd International Raceway.

The defending winner of the event earned his 48th career No. 1 Qualifier honor, the fifth most in the Funny Car category, with his final qualifying pass in the lane next to points leader and provisional pole sitter Robert Hight as the last pairing of the session. Hagan powered his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat to a 3.843-second elapsed time run at 331.36 mph, one quickest runs of the season, to steal away the pole position, collect a total of six bonus points and a bye-run for the opening round of eliminations. The Q4 run had some added drama when the body of Hagan’s racecar that sported the Mopar 85th Anniversary paint scheme honoring the legendary brand was damaged by a fiery explosion in the final feet of the qualifying run, necessitating a change to the Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat body for Sunday’s elimination rounds.

Hagan launched his race day with the new Dodge body and a solo run that didn’t go quite as planned when a cylinder went out at the hit of the throttle. The TSR team turned the car off to save any further damage and regroup for their next round against No. 8 seed Alexis DeJoria. The quarterfinal saw both competitors hit the throttle, immediately lose traction and find themselves in a pedalfest to the finish. Unfortunately, Hagan wasn’t able to regain control of his nitro machine quickly enough to battle to the finish to extend his raceday. 

While disappointed with the result, Hagan remains second in the Funny Car championship standings as his team now prepares for the cornerstone event of the season, the Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, and the final regular season event before the NHRA’s ”Countdown to the Championship” playoff series.

A two-time Top Fuel winner (2017 and 2019) at Brainerd International Raceway, Leah Pruett took her Mopar 85th Anniversary dragster for a 3.702 sec./330.47 mph run on her second qualifying lap on Friday to post the third quickest pass of the session and collect a bonus point. The TSR pilot’s lap was good enough to put her sixth on the eliminations ladder and set up a first round pairing with No. 11 seed Shawn Langdon with whom she is jostling for position in the points standings.

Pruett had a decent lap going until just after half-track when her ride began to drop cylinders and put an end to her run and chance to advance. She and her TSR team now turn their attention to the “Big Go” where they will work to capture their first Wally from the storied event. While currently tied for sixth place with Langdon in the Top Fuel standings, Pruett is also among three competitors battling for the fifth place position in the Countdown with just one event remaining ahead of the playoffs.

For a ninth time this season, Funny Car driver Cruz Pedregon qualified his Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the top-five for eliminations with a 3.888 seconds pass at 326.16 mph. The driver and team owner had a clean first round pass against No. 12 seed Bobby Bode that unfortunately wasn’t enough to turn on the win light and prematurely ended his day, dropping the Cruz Pedregon Racing machine to eighth place in the Funny Car standings.

The focus now shifts on preparing for the world’s biggest drag race and the NHRA Camping World Series’ marquis event, the prestigious 68th annual Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals, August 31-September 5, at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES:

Leah Pruett, Mopar 85th anniversary Top Fuel Dragster  

(No. 6 Qualifier – 3.702 seconds at 330.47 mph)  

Round 1: (0.099-second reaction time, 3.822 seconds at 279.85 mph) loss to No. 11 Shawn Langdon (0.045/3.760/329.34)

“As we’ve gotten further into the season, we’ve gotten further into our pool of knowledge. First session, we joined the rest of the field in having traction problems. It seemed to be difficult for all the teams. Going into Q2, we had a nice and spicy 3.70, which was something we felt was right inside our target for getting down the track, especially during a night session. The next day, we felt like we could improve upon that and our avenue was new. We tried a new theory of accelerating the car. At the end of the day, it is an acceleration game when we break it into multiple parts down the track. It was either going to throw down or throw up and what did it do? We ran almost the exact same time with a 3.70. That opened up a new Pandora’s box with theories about how we can apply power. We went back to our race day tune-up for the final session to get ready for Sunday. We didn’t quite make it down the track. Going into race day, sometimes you’ve got mountains and sometimes you’ve got valleys. Race day was not our most shining moment. We dropped a cylinder and I did not have my most impressive [reaction time] against somebody [Langdon] we continue to race throughout this entire season, I think more than anyone else. We will peak again and there’s not going to be a better time to do it than at the Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals. We’re still in a healthy spot in the championship and now we’ve learned more and we’ll gain more.”

Matt Hagan, Mopar 85th anniversary Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car  

(No. 1 Qualifier – 3.843 seconds at 331.36 mph)

Round 1: (0.074-second reaction time, 9.940 seconds at 71.63 mph) bye-run

Round 2: (0.081/5.198/259.81) loss to No. 8 Alexis DeJoria (0.126/4.638/229.31)

“What a tough weekend in Brainerd. We had canceled flights and we were down a couple of crew guys that were sick. Our Mopar 85th Anniversary Funny Car ended up No. 1 Qualifier, but blew up a lot of parts doing it. Things got hot and greasy in the second round and no one seemed to be going down the racetrack. We were one of the cars that couldn’t get down the track, so it ended up being a pedalfest. Alexis (DeJoria) smoked it a little further out there and got it to recover. It was just a tough round. As a veteran driver, you feel like you should win because of pedaling the car, letting it relax and getting it hooked back up. It’s tough when you smoke it at the hit like that and don’t get any momentum to move forward. We’ll pack everything up to head to Indy and get ready for the Countdown after that.”

Cruz Pedregon, Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 5  Qualifier – 3.888 seconds at 326.16 mph)

Round 1: (0.119-second reaction time, 3.947 seconds at 322.65 mph) loss to No. 12 Bobby Bode (0.098/3.931/316.08)

“After qualifying the Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the No. 5 spot with a great 3.88 second run at over 326 miles per hour, we went up against No. 12 qualifier Bobby Bode who qualified with a 4.11-second run. We went up there and the car ran well and it was just a good close drag race. We lost that round by a slim margin, but I’ve gotta be better than that on the reaction time. I left a little bit on the table there and Bobby took full advantage of it so give those guys credit; they did what they had to and took us out. We’ll go back and we’ll get better. We just have to keep on working and fine tuning. The team provided me with a great car after we initially struggled a little bit with the new car. We went with our backup car and made runs of 3.93, 3.88, and then first rounds 3.94. Those are really good solid winning runs so we’ll work on that and get ready for our biggest race of the year at the Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals in Indy.”

NHRA CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS STANDINGS:

Following the Lucas Oil Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway

FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)

1.   Robert Hight 1411 (6)

2.  Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 1161 (3)

3.  Ron Capps: 1105 (2)

4.  Bob Tasca III: 1043 (3) 

5.  John Force: 1033 (1)

6.  J.R. Todd: 789

7.  Alexis DeJoria: 735

8. Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 752

9.  Tim Wilkerson: 645

10. Chad Green: 524

TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)

1.  Brittany Force: 1206 (4)

2.  Mike Salinas: 1112 (4) 

3.  Steve Torrence: 1076 (1) 

4.  Justin Ashley: 1070 (2)

5.  Josh Hart: 797

6.  Leah Pruett (Dodge Power Brokers): 761(1)

6.  Shawn Langdon: 761

8.  Tony Schumacher: 703 (1)

9. Doug Kalitta: 692

10. Antron Brown 668 (1)

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Team Lead Laps, Rally All Day Long at Watkins Glen

17th

12th

19th

“We started our day maintaining speed and position in the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevy and then we had to make a decision with pit strategy. We went with the strategy of keeping strong track position because it was really difficult to pass. During the final stage, we got spun and ended up having to go to pit road earlier than planned and it put us way back on the restart. We fought back all day long and after our final pit stop, a few cautions came out so we were able to gain some spots. Pretty up and down day for our team but I’m proud of how hard we worked all day. We’re looking forward to Daytona.” -Austin Dillon

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 KCMG Chevrolet Team Grab Solid Eighth-Place Finish at Watkins Glen

7th

5th

13th

“Everyone on the KCMG team did a good job today. We lost a lot of track positions when I spun in the bus stop but we fought our way back and we were in contention for a top five at the end of the race. We started off the day in wet conditions and once the track dried our KCMG Chevrolet got really tight. We made the car better by the end of the race. We finished seventh but I was hoping for a top five.” -Tyler Reddick

NASCAR CUP SERIES

WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL

GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES & QUOTES

AUGUST 21, 2022

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:

POS.   DRIVER

1st      KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1

2nd     AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 16 ACTION INDUSTRIES CAMARO ZL1 

4th      CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1 

5th      DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 PRINCESS CRUISES CAMARO ZL1 

7th      TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 KCMG CAMARO ZL1 

10th    ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1 

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: 

POS.  DRIVER

1st      Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)

2nd     AJ Allmendinger (Chevrolet)

3rd      Joey Logano (Ford)

4th      Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)

5th      Daniel Suarez (Chevrolet) 

The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next Saturday, August 27, at Daytona International Speedway with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at 7 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBC, the NBCSports Gold App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 – Race Winner

Tell me about the move to pass your teammate, Chase Elliott. We did see the right front locked up going into turn one.

“Yeah, I knew that was kind of my only opportunity. I’m not proud of it. But being in the inside lane or the right lane.. being the leader, choosing the left lane, it definitely wins out. But when it gets too late in the race, it’s definitely risky.

Like I said, I knew that was my only opportunity to get by him. I felt like our cars were pretty equal today. Had a lot of fun after the green flag cycle trying to chase him down. Kind of burnt my stuff up a little bit.

The restarts kept me in it and kept our team in it. Proud of our guys. Good to get another win here at Watkins Glen and get some more bonus points going into the Playoffs, which we haven’t had many of those this year. Hopefully this will build on some momentum and we can keep racking up some more points.”

If the shoe was on the other foot, would you want to have a conversation with your teammate?

“I’m sure, yeah, we would ultimately have a conversation. We have a competition meeting tomorrow.

Yeah, I think if I was in his shoes; I would understand the risk that I’m taking choosing left lane also. Again, like I said, I’m not proud of it, but it’s what I felt like I had to do to get the win.”

Did you learn something on the restart before that you said you’re going to try to take advantage of it on the final one?

“Yeah, all the restarts I was in the right lane yesterday with William (Byron). I always got myself in a bad spot where my angle was pinched off. We’d always make contact and I’d end up sideways and get passed by people.

I knew everybody’s aggression was going to be higher as each restart went on. I didn’t want to put myself in that position again to get passed by AJ (Allmendinger) or Joey (Logano), who were really aggressive behind me.

Yeah, it’s just part of racing at road courses, especially this year it seems like. Again, not proud of it, but we did what we had to do.”

AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 16 ACTION INDUSTRIES CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 2nd

You had a chance there on those last couple of restarts. Would you have done anything differently? 

“I don’t think so. Obviously, Kyle (Larson) drove it in quite deep to get the lead there on Chase (Elliott) and I was getting shoved in the corner. Maybe if I could have gotten the car squared off a little bit earlier in the corner.. but obviously I was getting run into so hard that I was happy just to keep it on the race track and not have anybody next to me off the corner. 

Just proud of everybody at Kaulig Racing. This is absolutely one of the most fun cars I have ever driven in my life. I was hustling it and it was fast. The Action Industries Chevy, can’t thank them enough. To finish second in a Cup race in your first year as a team isn’t bad. But god, when you are that close, it’s disappointing.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 4th

Kyle says he’s not happy about the way the pass happened. He also said if he was in your shoes, he would have understood the risk of restarting on the outside. Did you consider that risk on the final restart?

“Just a huge congratulations to Kyle (Larson) and everybody on the No. 5 team. Congratulations to everybody at Hendrick Motorsports for getting another win. Appreciate Kelley Blue Book for being on our car this weekend.”

He says this would be discussed between the two of you. What would you like to say to him?

“Congratulations. He did a great job. Seriously, they deserve it. Looking forward to going to Daytona next week and trying to get one for our team.”

Your first conversation was with Mr. Hendrick; was he able to console you at all on the loss today?

“Just congratulated him. Like I said, always good to see HMS win. The boss deserves all the wins, all the great things that go on with this company. Proud of that. Looking forward to next week.”

DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 PRINCESS CRUISES CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 5th 

“Our No. 99 Princess Cruises Chevy was good. It was a little bit tight, a little bit loose. I felt like we had to play with the balance of the car quite a bit. But overall, I felt like our car was good. Probably not a winning car, but a solid top-five car. With the right circumstances, we probably could have won the race, but we just spent too much time trying to gain track position.”

ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 10th 

“Best road course car we’ve had all year. Thanks to the 43 guys, the hard work is paying off. We need to qualify a little better, but a good day and finish for our FOCUSfactor Chevy. Honestly, I was kind of hoping for more rain. I was having fun when the track was wet. Watkins Glen is one of my favorite road courses, so I’m glad to leave with a top 10 and head to Daytona next weekend.”

TY DILLON, NO. 42 ALLEGIANT CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 16th

“I’m really proud of our result today with our Allegiant Camaro ZL1. We’re just building momentum, man, and it takes time in this sport to build relationships with a lot of new people, but it feels like Jerame (crew chief) and I are starting to click. The last three weeks, we’ve been running really strong and doing what we want to do. We cashed in a lot of stage points today, but were also able to turn it around and finish 16th. That’s really hard to do on these road courses, and we did it. Really proud of our effort, we’re building momentum at a good time.”

KIMI RÄIKKÖNEN, NO. 91 RECOGNI CAMARO ZL1, sidelined by damage sustained in an accident on lap 46; Finished 37th 

KIMI, YOU WERE INVOLVED IN THAT INCIDENT OUT OF THE BUS STOP. WAS THERE ANYTHING YOU FELT YOU COULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENT THERE TO AVOID IT? 

“I wasn’t really involved with it. I had a good line there, but everybody seemed to be coming on the left of me, and unfortunately I had no time to react. The first impact, somebody hit the tires or the wheels directly, the wheels spun and something was wrong with the race car, but that how it goes.”

I KNOW IT WAS SHORTER THAN YOU WANTED, BUT DID YOU ENJOY YOURSELF HERE IN THE NASCAR CUP SERIES? 

“Yeah, it was good fun. I felt more confidence all of the time. We had some good laps. It’s a shame. The car felt like it had a lot of speed, but that’s how it goes sometimes.”

TEAM CHEVY RACE QUICK NOTES

Stage One:

·       After waiting out a lengthy rain delay, an all-Chevy front row led the NASCAR Cup Series field to the green in today’s Go Bowling at The Glen with two-time Watkins Glen winner Chase Elliott and the No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Camaro ZL1 from the pole position.  

·       Pit strategy from atop pit boxes all throughout pit road became vital early in the race.. with teams looking to make the race either a two- or three-stop race. 

·       Five Chevrolet drivers made up the Top-10 of Stage One: 

2nd     Tyler Reddick, No. 8 KCMG Camaro ZL1

3rd      Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Princess Cruises Camaro ZL1

5th      Ross Chastain, No. 1 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL1

7th      Ty Dillon, No. 42 Allegiant Camaro ZL1

10th    AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Action Industries Camaro ZL1

Stage Two: 

·       Three Chevrolet drivers placed in the Top-10 of Stage Two: 

4th      Chase Elliott, No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Camaro ZL1

5th      Ty Dillon, No. 42 Allegiant Camaro ZL1

8th      Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1

Post-Race Notes: 

·       Kyle Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 team goes back-to-back in wins at Watkins Glen International. 

·       The win is Larson’s second NCS victory of 2022; his second at Watkins Glen International; and his 18th career victory in 284 NASCAR Cup Series starts. 

·       Chevrolet has now recorded wins in 15 of the past 16 NASCAR Cup Series road course races, including a streak of the past 11. 

·       The winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history; Chevrolet now has 828 all-time NASCAR Cup Series victories. 

Elite Motorsports Pro Mod And Sportsman Crews Demonstrated Teamwork At Its Finest This Weekend

Elite Motorsports Weekend Recap

FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series The weekend was full of emotion and hustle for Lyle Barnett’s Elite Motorsports Pro Mod team at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. The talented driver experienced multiple ups and downs over the course of the event, including losing in the first round of eliminations despite setting the track speed record in the same pass.  Barnett began his first trip to the historic race track without his Crew Chief, Justin Elkes. Travel complications delayed the skilled tuner and he didn’t make it to the track until about five minutes prior to the third qualifying pass on Saturday. Pro Mod crews run on efficiency and every member is vital.  Despite the absence of his crew chief and going up in smoke near the finish line in his first qualifying pass, Barnett’s crew never lost sight of what was at stake. They knew that it would be a tight turnaround to tear things apart, diagnose any issues, and put the car back together in time for the second qualifying pass, which also served as the first round of the D-Wagon NHRA Pro Mod Shootout. The team immediately went into thrashing mode, with the unspoken understanding that timing, precision and communication would be key if they were to get to the staging lanes in time. In the true spirit of drag racing, Barnett’s Pro Mod competitor Stevie “Fast” Jackson (who was slated to compete against Barnett in the first round of the D-Wagon Pro Mod Shootout) was there to lend a hand to help his opponent get to the starting line on time and fully prepared. Unfortunately, Barnett’s car shut off early to give the win to Jackson.  Things turned around for Barnett in the final qualifying session of the weekend. His powerful Twin Turbo Pro Mod machine hooked up early and held on for a ferocious pass of 5.806-seconds at 254.04 mph to qualify eighth. He faced Jose Gonzalez in the first round of eliminations this morning. Gonzalez got the starting line advantage and held on for the win, while Barnett’s powerful launch resulted in his best run of the weekend, a 5.774 at 256.16, setting the track speed record in the process.  “This weekend was a whirlwind,” said Barnett. “Overall it was more successful than it may have appeared from the outside. To set a speed record our first time at a new track really shows just what this crew is capable of and I’m really proud of my team. Jose and the Q80 team are as good as they come, they’re the reigning champs, and Steve Petty knows how to get down the race track.  “It may not have been the result we envisioned, but to see how everyone in the Pro Mod community rallied around us and pitched in to help when we needed it, that’s what this sport is all about – making each other better. We’ve still got a lot of racing left to do this season and I think everything we’re learning right now is about to pay off in a big way. We definitely feel like we have a car that can win, we just gotta string these good runs together! There was a huge shake-up in the points this week. The rest of the year is gonna be interesting. I’d like to thank my crew Justin Elkes, Ben Staas, Mike Earle, my dad, all of my sponsors, and the folks that stand behind my program. God bless the USA!”

Sportsman Summary – NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series In drag racing, it’s often true that you only get by with a little help from your friends. Going multiple rounds in their first national event appearances and even picking up a couple of class wins, the power of teamwork was evident in the efforts of the Patterson-Elite crew as Canadian drivers Terry Elias (FSS/B 2022 COPO), his son James Elias (FSS/A 2020 COPO), and their friend and mechanic John Harder (FSS/A 2020 COPO), all of Winkler, Manitoba, Canada, competed in their first NHRA national event in Super Stock. Their friend Larry Dyck (FS/B 2019 COPO), of East St. Paul, Manitoba, competed in the Stock Eliminator category. Kansas natives Todd Patterson (FSS/D 2019 COPO) and Aydan Patterson (FSS/F 2014 COPO) also participated in the Super Stock category for Patterson-Elite.  When any one of the gorgeous Patterson-Elite COPO Camaros takes to the line, all heads turn. These sleek, finely-tuned machines beautifully encompass all that is American Muscle. J. Elias powered his red COPO to a victory in Super Stock class eliminations thanks in part to a stunning .009 reaction time. T. Patterson also snagged a Super Stock class win while T. Elias and Harder were runners-up in their class competitions.  In addition to these impressive class wins, T. Patterson’s pass of 8.964-seconds landed him in the No. 2 qualifier position in a field of 47 competitive Super Stock entries. J. Elias and Harder also landed in the top half of the qualifying order in the No. 11 and No. 17 positions, respectively. From there, the Patterson-Elite team managed to turn on a few more win lights. J. Elias, T. Elias and T. Patterson powered through the first two rounds of Super Stock competition. In the third round, teammates T. Elias and T. Patterson faced off against each other. T. Patterson got the starting line advantage and held onto it for the round win, advancing his Patterson-Elite COPO Camaro to a quarterfinal appearance.

Photos

With ominous clouds in the distance, Pro Mod driver Lyle Barnett prepares for launch in his Elite Motorsports Twin Turbo Chevrolet Camaro. Photo credit: Auto ImageryTodd Patterson raced to a quarterfinal appearance in Brainerd, Minn. Photo credit: Auto Imagery

James Elias launches a powerful pass in his Super Stock COPO. Photo credit: Auto ImageryJohn Harder takes his Patterson-Elite Super Stock machine for a fast pass in Brainerd. Photo credit: Auto Imagery

Terry Elias catches the eyes of a packed audience at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals. Photo credit: Auto ImageryLarry Dyck takes to the line in his Stock Eliminator COPO. Photo credit: Auto Imagery

NASCAR CUP SERIES WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN TEAM CHEVY RACE WIN QUOTE & NOTES AUGUST 21, 2022   KYLE LARSON TAKES CHEVROLET TO 11TH CONSECUTIVE NASCAR CUP SERIES ROAD COURSE VICTORY AT WATKINS GLENCamaro ZL1’s 14th NCS Win of 2022·       Kyle Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 team goes back-to-back in wins at Watkins Glen International. ·       The win is Larson’s second NCS victory of 2022; his second at Watkins Glen International; and his 18th career victory in 284 NASCAR Cup Series starts. ·       Chevrolet has now recorded wins in 15 of the past 16 NASCAR Cup Series road course races, including a streak of the past 11. ·       The winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history; Chevrolet now has 828 all-time NASCAR Cup Series victories.  KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1, Race Winner Quick Quote:Q. Tell me about the move to pass your teammate, Chase Elliott. We did see the right front locked up going into turn one.“Yeah, I knew that was kind of my only opportunity. I’m not proud of it. But being in the inside lane or the right lane.. being the leader, choosing the left lane, it definitely wins out. But when it gets too late in the race, it’s definitely risky. Like I said, I knew that was my only opportunity to get by him. I felt like our cars were pretty equal today. Had a lot of fun after the green flag cycle trying to chase him down. Kind of burnt my stuff up a little bit.The restarts kept me in it and kept our team in it. Proud of our guys. Good to get another win here at Watkins Glen and get some more bonus points going into the Playoffs, which we haven’t had many of those this year. Hopefully this will build on some momentum and we can keep racking up some more points.” Q. If the shoe was on the other foot, would you want to have a conversation with your teammate?“I’m sure, yeah, we would ultimately have a conversation. We have a competition meeting tomorrow. Yeah, I think if I was in his shoes; I would understand the risk that I’m taking choosing left lane also. Again, like I said, I’m not proud of it, but it’s what I felt like I had to do to get the win.” Q. Did you learn something on the restart before that you said you’re going to try to take advantage of it on the final one?“Yeah, all the restarts I was in the right lane yesterday with William (Byron). I always got myself in a bad spot where my angle was pinched off. We’d always make contact and I’d end up sideways and get passed by people. I knew everybody’s aggression was going to be higher as each restart went on. I didn’t want to put myself in that position again to get passed by AJ (Allmendinger) or Joey (Logano), who were really aggressive behind me. Yeah, it’s just part of racing at road courses, especially this year it seems like. Again, not proud of it, but we did what we had to do.”

Capps earns a final round appearance at Brainerd

BRAINERD, Minn. (August 21, 2022) – Steve Torrence drove to his first victory of the season at Brainerd International Raceway on Sunday evening, besting Tony Schumacher in the final round. It was Torrence’s second consecutive win at Brainerd. In Funny Car, Ron Capps advanced to the final, where he came up just short to Bob Tasca.

It was a strong day for Team Toyota as eight of the nine Toyota-supported teams won their first round matchups.

Toyota Post-Race Recap

NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series

Brainerd International Raceway

Race 15 of 22

TOYOTA TOP FUEL FINISHING POSITIONS 

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Steve Torrence	Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Winner	W. 3.755 v. 5.286(M. Salinas) W. 4.945 v. 5.335(A. Brown) W. 5.400 v. 10.392(B. Force) W. 3.866 v. 3.942(T. Schumacher)
Justin Ashley	Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Semi-Finals	W. 3.720 v. 3.817(K. Baldwin) W. 3.726 v. 3.807(S. Langdon) L. 4.936 v. 4.336(T. Schumacher)
Antron Brown	Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W. 3.688 v. 3.721(C. Millican) L. 5.335 v. 4.945(S. Torrence
Billy Torrence	Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W. 4.050 v. 4.480(A. Prock) L. 4.586 v. 4.394(B. Force)
Shawn Langdon	CMR Roofing & Construction Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W. 3.760 v. 3.822(L. Pruett) L. 3.807 v. 3.726(J. Ashley)
Doug Kalitta	Mac Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	First Round	L. 5.349 v. 3.940(T. Schumacher)

TOYOTA FUNNY CAR FINISHING POSITIONS 

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Ron Capps	NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Finalist	W. 3.931 v. 4.022(J. Force) W. 8.539 to No Run(B. Bode) W. 3.955 v. Foul(A. DeJoria) L. 4.007 v. 3.945(B. Tasca)
Alexis DeJoria	Bandero Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Semi-Finals	W. 3.967 v. 4.241(B. Alexander) W. 5.712 v. 6.187(M. Hagan) L. Foul v. 3.955(R. Capps)
J.R. Todd	DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Second Round	W. 3.898 v. 4.637(J. Campbell) L. 4.451 v. 4.356(R. Hight)

TOYOTA QUOTES

STEVE TORRENCE, Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Torrence Racing

Final Result: Winner

What does a race like today mean to you?

“A day like today is one that you are most proud of as a driver because when everything goes good, you just need to do your job and drive straight, leave on time and not make mistakes. It’s days like today when the car doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do – and that is where we need to earn our keep. Richard Hogan and Bobby Lagana (crew chiefs), they didn’t go up any lap trying to smoke the tires and that is just the cards that we were dealt. I did an okay job of getting it down through there – better than the opponent in the other lane and was able to come out victorious today. Those are days that you cherish. You remember those days more than those when you drove it to the end, and everything went great. I will remember this race for a long time. It takes a lot of experience at doing that to become good at it, and I don’t have a lot of experience. I’ve had a pretty good, solid race car that just goes a-to-b, so today, I learned some lessons. I did a good job by accident in the second round, and then made a mistake in the third round, but was able to recover and get the car back going. Final round against Tony (Schumacher), but typically Tony goes in fast, so I went in fast and then he kind of made me sit there for a minute. I was a little behind. I was .080 on the tree. That is my worst light of the day, but we left together. I could tell that we were going okay and then I saw his car kind of marching around half track. I saw him wheel out, and I’m thinking, not again. Then it slid back, and I thought okay, it might have turned our way. Definitely a totally different race track than the past two days. People were coming in here running .66 or .64 and a handful of .60s everywhere, and it just totally turns around and becomes hot and greasy and just whoever could get it down through there from a-to-b with making the least mistakes. Good day. It will be one that I remember for a while.”

RON CAPPS, NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Ron Capps Motorsports

Final Result: Finalist

How was your race?

“This whole weekend here at Brainerd was a lot of adversity. We always talk about Brainerd being intricate in a championship run because we’re into the playoff and the Countdown (to the Championship) in just a couple of races. The thing about Brainerd is that it has such a great track surface and when conditions are great, you can throw anything at it as we saw in qualifying, and when it’s hot out like race day today, you have to be savvy and that’s what Guido (Dean Antonelli) and (John) Medlen and our entire NAPA AutoCare group did all day long. We almost won and that would have been fantastic. This was a great, feel-good weekend for our team. You have to be Countdown ready at Brainerd and I don’t care where you are in the points, you need to be ready for the playoffs. We needed this. We’re going to Indy, and I’ve never won that race. We have a great Toyota race car and a lot of confidence. For me as a d

BRAINERD, Minn. (Aug. 20, 2022) – The Automobile Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS and Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac dragster took Robert Hight and Brittany Force, respectively, to the semifinals of the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist dragster as well as John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy had first round exits. Unwavering through qualifying, No. 2 qualifiers Robert Hight and the Auto Club Chevy kept consistent in the first round with a 3.874-second pass at 330.63 mph to defeat Steven Densham’s 3.967 at 327.43. Much like teammate Brittany Force in Top Fuel, Hight had to work for his second-round win. Up in tire smoke against J.R. Todd, both Funny Car champions pedaled to the finish line hurting their engines. Hight would have a 4.356-second run at 284.27 mph to send Todd’s 4.451 at 221.16 home. Facing most recent event winner Bob Tasca III in the semifinals Hight and the Auto Club Camaro would again smoke the tires. Hight would be unable to get the Chevy hooked back up and have to watch Tasca go past for a 3.926 at 326.08. Hight would officially go 4.646 at 200.44. “Disappointing end to what was shaping up to be a pretty good weekend. These Auto Club guys, they worked really hard to get this Chevy Camaro ready for the semifinals,” Hight said. “I’ve said it before, this is such a competitive field. You really have to be perfect and maybe get a little luck every once in a while. We had already planned to test tomorrow, hopefully get one step closer to being perfect, get us ready for Indy and the Countdown, that’s’ where it really matters.” Coming into the day as the No. 1 qualifier, Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team earned a bye in the first round of eliminations. The David Grubnic and Mac Savage tunes dragster did not waste the uncontested pass laying down the quickest run of the entire event at 3.646-seconds and 333.58 mph. In the second round, it was Force who showed her skills pedaling her way to a 4.394-second pass at 255.63 mph to defeat Billy Torrence’s 4.586 at 213.40. It would be from one Torrence to the next for Force. In the semifinals, Steve Torrence, Billy’s son, and Force would go up in smoke at almost identical times. Force would have a wild ride, pedaling the Monster machine once before having to lift and coast to 10.392-seconds and 66.09 mph while Torrence would pedal his way to a 5.400 at 276.07. “Interesting weekend for our Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team at BIR this weekend. We made three great runs during qualifying, our best a 3.661 at 334 mph that pushed us to the top. Today we improved in E1 running a 3.646 333,” Force said. “In the second round we had to work for it. The warmer track made for big changes for everyone. The car went up in smoke and I pedaled for the win light. Unfortunately, in the semis, we didn’t have the same luck. Our car got up on the tires right at the hit and that was it for us. We kept the points lead and plan to turn this thing around in a couple weeks at the U.S. Nationals in Indiana.” After a turnaround qualifying effort that consisted of four solid passes down Brainerd International Raceway, something the team hadn’t done since the season opener, Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / RMT dragster got into a pedal fest in the first round against Billy Torrence. Prock would come up short with a 4.480-second pass at 237.21 mph to Torrence’s 4.050 at 236.38. “I feel like I let the guys down there. I know how to drive the car better than that and get it hooked back up sooner. There are times when the driver has to have the team’s back and that should have been one of those times. This Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team was having a good weekend, really started to turn things around. We’ll keep at it, move onto Indy where we get points and a half. We’ll be looking for a big points weekend there heading into the Countdown.” John Force and the PEAK Chevy made their best run of the weekend in the first round of the Lucas Oil Nationals. Unfortunately, their best wasn’t enough. Force would handle the Camaro to a 4.022-second pass at 284.99 mph that was bettered by Ron Capps’ 3.931 at 325.45. “Rough weekend for this PEAK Chevy team. We struggled to get down the track. But everyone else, Robert Hight in the Auto Club Chevy, Brittany in the Monster Dragster and the Prock kid with Montana Brand, they all ran well,” Force said. “We’ll be fine, we’ll get it figured out. We’re in the Countdown, that’s what matters. Points will reset and we’ll be ready when it counts.” Next for the John Force Racing drivers is the conclusion of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series regular 2022 season on Labor Day weekend, Sept. 02-05, with the Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. The NHRA Countdown to the Championship, NHRA’s six race playoffs, kicks off Sept. 15-18 with the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pennsylvania.

BRAINERD, MN (August 21, 2022) — Over three days in the land of 10,000 lakes Josh Hart and the R+L Carrier Top Fuel dragster team rewrote their personal performance record book at both ends of the spectrum. When two days of qualifying concluded yesterday Hart had secured his best qualifying starting position, No. 2 in a tough field, with his career quickest elapsed time of 3.668 seconds. The second-year pro and contender for the Top Fuel championship earned four qualifying bonus points by posting the second quickest passes in each of the final two qualifying rounds. Heading into race day the confidence level was high for Hart and his team.

R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster, photo by Auto Imagery

“We really made the most of the qualifying run opportunities,” said Hart. “Back-to-back runs in the 3.60s shows we have a strong dragster for the rest of the season. We have been racing in really hot conditions and this weekend mother nature cooled it down for us.”

Once again Hart and his Ron Douglas tuned Top Fuel dragster were the first pair to get the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals underway today. Hart continued his record setting weekend with a dominant first round win over Scott Farley. The driver from Ocala, Florida, was first off of the starting line and blasted down the track with a solid 3.710 second pass at a career fastest speed of 334.73 mph. The strong run continued three days of quick and fast runs by the R+L Carriers Technet Top Fuel team.

Josh Hart and R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster, photo by Auto Imagery

“That was a big win for this R+L Carriers team because we want to keep the pressure on the teams behind us in the points,” said Hart. “We want to go into the playoffs as high in the points as possible so first round wins are critical. That was also a great run to see that speed. We made our quickest run yesterday and to come back in the first round and set a persona speed record is great for the team”

In the quarterfinals racing eight-time Top Fuel world champion Tony Schumacher for the first time Hart was not intimidated in the slightest. The second-year pro grabbed a starting line advantage with a superior reaction time, but his dragster went into almost immediate tire smoke and shut off. Schumacher’s dragster lost power just past half-track and coasted across the finish line in front of Hart. It was a bittersweet ending to a record setting weekend for Hart and the R+L Carriers Top Fuel team.

“It was getting warmer out there and we had to wait a little bit for Tony,” said Hart. “I don’t know if waiting hurt us, but I am going to look at the overall positives for the weekend and start to focus on Indy. We will have a special design on our dragster starting at the U.S. Nationals and I can’t wait to unveil it.”

Heading into the final race of the regular season the R+L Carriers team is sitting in fifth place with a decent lead over the rest of the Top Fuel dragsters in the Top Ten. The U.S. Nationals will feature points and a half which should provide Hart with enough points to hold off any pursuers as he races to qualify for the NHRA Countdown for the first time in his career.

Qualifying Results

Q1: No Time

Q2: 3.746 sec, 327.90 mph; Qual. 7

Q3: 3.668 sec, 332.34 mph; Qual. 2

Q4: 3.692 sec, 330.88 mph; Qual. 2

Bonus Points: +4 (2^nd quickest of Q3 and Q4)

Race Results

First Round

Josh Hart, Ocala, Fla., R+L Carriers dragster, 3.710, 334.73 mph def. Scott Farley, Ellington, CT, Totten Racing, 14.142, 36.59 mph

Second Round

Tony Schumacher, Austin Texas, Maynard Family Foundation dragster, 4.227, 201.16 mphdef. Josh Hart, Ocala, Fla., R+L Carriers dragster, 10.848, 78.57 mph

Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Ten – Top Fuel

1. Brittany Force              1206

2. Mike Salinas                  1112

3. Steve Torrence             1076

4. Justin Ashley                 1070

5. Josh Hart                       797

6. Leah Pruett                   761

6. Shawn Langdon           761

8. Tony Schumacher        703

9. Doug Kalitta                  692

10. Antron Brown            668

9. Austin Prock            602

10. Clay Millican         583

BRAINERD, MN (August 21, 2022) — For the third time in the last four races Justin Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster powered by Vita C Energy raced to the semifinals. Today at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals Ashley, the No. 3 qualifier, outran Krista Baldwin and Shawn Langdon before dropping a close race to eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher in the semifinals. The two-time winner in 2022 posted strong qualifying runs on Friday and Saturday to earn five qualifying bonus points with the second quickest run of the second session and quickest of the final session. Coming into race day Ashley was looking to close the gap on the Top Fuel points leaders with two regular season races remaining.

Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster powered by Vita C Energy, photo by Ron Lewis

Ashley was not taking the second year pro Baldwin lightly as he jumped off the starting line with a .044 reaction time and the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster stayed glued to the middle of the groove and ran away for another first round win. Baldwin posted her quickest and fastest pass of her career in a losing effort to Ashley who tripped the finish line timing beams with a winning time of 3.720 seconds at 331.94 mph.

In a race that featured the two quickest runs of the quarterfinals Ashley got the win over 2013 Top Fuel world champion Langdon. Both Toyota dragsters blasted down the track and just past the 500-foot marker Ashley got the nose of his 11,000 horsepower Phillips Connect Vita C Energy Toyota dragster in front of Langdon’s CMR dragster. Ashley posted the quickest ET and Langdon was the second quickest in a losing effort. At the finish line it was 3.726 seconds to 3.807 at over 330 mph for Ashley.

“That was a great race with Shawn,” said Ashley. “There were a lot of guys smoking the tires in front of us, but I have a lot of confidence in my crew chiefs. We made a great run and we got to move on to the semifinals.”

In the semifinals Ashley was psychic on the starting line with a .031 reaction time but his Phillips Connect Toyota dragster smoked the tires right beside Schumacher. Both dragsters started battling tire smoke and each driver was working to pedal their 11,000 horsepower racecars. The veteran was able to get more momentum and he got to the finish line just in front of Ashley.

“This was a really great race for our Phillips Connect Vita C Energy team,” said Ashley. “We didn’t accomplish our ultimate objective which is to win the race. I thought we had one of the best racecars on the property. Mike Green and Tommy DeLago did a nice job with this Phillips Connect dragster. We are going to learn for this race and apply this information at the U.S. Nationals and the Pep Boys Call Out race. I am looking forward to an exciting rest of the season and Countdown.”

The weekend was a busy three days for Ashley and his marketing partners Bendix, Velociti, Sensata Insights, Lucas Oil, and KATO Fastening Systems. The team will head to Indianapolis in two weeks for the U.S. Nationals and also the conclusion of the Pep Boys Call Out specialty race. Ashley is one of four competitors still in competition for the race with the race.

Qualifying Results

Q1: 4.461 sec, 173.58 mph; Qual. 8

Q2: 3.691 sec; 328.94 mph; Qual. 2

Q3: 8.626 sec; 71.70 mph; Qual. 3

Q4: 3.679 sec; 334.82 mph; Qual. 3

Bonus Points: +5 (2^nd quickest of Q2 and quickest of Q4)

Race Results

First Round

Justin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster powered by Vita C Energy, 3.720, 331.94 mph def. Krista Baldwin, Pittsboro, Ind., Lucas Oil/McLeod dragster, 3.817, 319.52 mph

Second Round

Justin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster powered by Vita C Energy, 3.726, 330.63 mph def. Shawn Langdon, Avon, Ind., CMR Construction and Roofing Toyota dragster, 3.807, 324.44 mph

Semifinals

Tony Schumacher, Austin, Texas, Maynard Family Foundation dragster, 4.336, 226.32 mph def. Justin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster powered by Vita C Energy,4.936, 292.71 mph

Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Ten – Top Fuel

1. Brittany Force              1206

2. Mike Salinas                  1112

3. Steve Torrence             1076

4. Justin Ashley                1070

5. Josh Hart                       797

6. Leah Pruett                   761

6. Shawn Langdon           761

8. Tony Schumacher        703

9. Doug Kalitta                  692

10. Antron Brown            668