Challenges with weather, pace work against Garcia and Taylor in GTD PRO ELKHART LAKE, Wisc. (Aug. 7, 2022) – Corvette Racing came home third in class Sunday at Road America in the IMSA Fastline SportsCar Weekend. Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor finished on the GT Daytona (GTD) PRO podium in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R for their second straight top-three finish at the circuit in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

Garcia started third and drove the first 40 minutes in mostly dry conditions, although track conditions grew more treacherous on his slick Michelin tires toward the end of his stint. The Corvette Racing crew got the No. 3 Corvette and Taylor out at the head of GTD PRO after the first stop. Unfortunately, Taylor had the worst of the conditions as he rejoined the race on wet-weather tires. Even more frustrating was the No. 3 Corvette’s lack of straight-line speed also started to rear its head as Taylor went from first to third on the restart in a matter of two corners. He fell down to fourth behind the No. 23 Aston Martin, but more than once he took back the position into one of Road America’s brake zones only to fall back again on the long runs between corners. Meanwhile, the rain was somewhat consistent at the start of Taylor’s stint but moved to drying conditions as the second of three full-course yellows flew with 78 minutes remaining. Garcia got back in on slick tires and restarted fourth in class.  He finally got the No. 3 Corvette back onto the podium with less than hour to go while a number of GTD cars were in a fuel-savings mode to try and make the end in case the race went green the rest of the way. That didn’t happen as a third yellow came out with 54 minutes to go. Corvette Racing engineers elected to keep Garcia out to try and gain an advantage in track position, but a number of GTD cars had the same idea – including the eventual race-winning Lexus. The race went green with 36 minutes to go but Garcia was swallowed up and passed by two more lapped GTD cars on the run from the final corner to the start-finish line. He was able to hold on to the third position in GTD PRO before a final yellow ended the race with eight minutes left. Corvette Racing’s next event is the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR from Virginia International Raceway on August 26-28.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED THIRD IN GTD PRO:“The way to you get laptime in our car is completely different to everyone else. On every restart we lost at least one or two positions. So you feel helpless and frustrated. There’s nothing we can do to make our car faster. Hopefully the next race at VIR is better.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED THIRD IN GTD PRO: “It was a frustrating day as a whole. It seems our pace over a lap isn’t too horrible, but where our pace is made against everyone else makes it almost impossible to race anyone. It’s the same story on a different weekend from the last five or six races. It’s frustrating overall, so hopefully we can go to Virginia and be a little more competitive than this.”

Nos. 02 and 01 Cadillac DPi-V.Rs finish second and third in 2-hour, 40-minute race

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Aug. 7, 2022) – Cadillac Racing claimed two spots on the podium in the IMSA Fastlane SportsCar Weekend in a drama-filled 2-hour, 40-minute race at Road America. Alex Lynn and Earl Bamber co-drove the No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R to a runner-up finish – its fourth podium of the season – after starting second. The No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R co-driven by Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande earned its fourth consecutive podium, which includes two victories, with a third-place finish.

The ninth race of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season included mixed weather conditions that played with strategy and tire choices on the 4.048-mile natural-terrain road course, four full-course cautions and hard racing late between the No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R and the No. 5 Mustang Sampling Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R that benefitted Bamber in the end as the race ended under caution. “That was a mixed race and pretty difficult up and down the whole way,” said Bamber, who drove around both Cadillac DPi-V.Rs that went wide while braking in the Kink. “We had the pace and had the fuel to do it at the end. It’s just a shame we didn’t get all the laps.” The pole-sitting No. 10 Acura won the race. “I think it’s a really good podium,” added Bamber. “It shows we have a really good car and pace. It’s so close in this championship, a little bit of strategy, a little bit of track position and you win.”The No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R, co-driven by Tristan Vautier and Richard Westbrook finished fifth after leading Laps 20 through 45 rain-soaked laps. The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R, co-driven by Olivier Pla and Pipo Derani, placed sixth. Cadillac Racing teams conclude the 2022 season and the DPi era at the Motul Petit Le Mans on Sept. 28-Oct. 1 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Five Cadillac Racing DPi-V.R entries will contest the 10-hour race on the 2.54-mile, 12-turn natural-terrain road course. In 2021, Cadillac Racing locked up its third Manufacturer Championship since 2017 while the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R earned the Team and Driver championships with a runner-up finish at the racecourse in Georgia.

Cadillac Racing from the cockpit No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R (finished second)Earl Bamber: “That was a mixed race and pretty difficult up and down the whole way. We were at the front; we were at the back. Tire choice was difficult. The last stop we went to the back and were just trying to make our way forward. The 01 got together with the 5 and we went to third and we were racing the 60 when it went in narrow (in the Carousel) and went off. We had the pace and had the fuel to do it at the end. It’s just a shame we didn’t get all the laps. I think it’s a really good podium. It shows we have a really good car and pace. It’s so close in this championship, a little bit of strategy, a little bit of track position and you win.”  Alex Lynn: “Crazy race with the weather, starting on slicks, then going to the wets and back again. Difficult one, but a good one for the fans. Happy with second.” No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R (finished third)Renger van der Zande: “We all race hard in IMSA. I wanted to win this one really bad, so I gave it all. We made one mistake on the class split – the last one – and that was the important one, so we lost (position) to the 5 car. I got behind him; that’s out own mistake. Then I had to just barge through to get by. He braked on the wet and we stayed wide and lost a position. It’s another podium, so we should be happy with that.” Sebastien Bourdais: “I had to make up for my mistake yesterday. It’s shame that we can’t put ourselves back in the championship mix. We were behind the 10 car and the rain started to fall, and at that point the team made the call to stay on slicks with the information they had. Unfortunately, the 5 car was on wets, so we lost track position there. From there, the race kind of unfolded in a bit of a weird way. We gave ourselves a chance, though we didn’t quite execute everything strategy-wise. We’ll just keep digging and try to win Petit.” No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R (finished fifth)Richard Westbrook: “We’re obviously disappointed with the result. We showed again that we can fly at the front and made some great calls, particularly tire-wise, and had good pace in the wet. The car was awesome. The yellows didn’t help us. We had a nice, healthy lead and it wasn’t to be. Tristan did a great job keeping everyone behind him, but then we got stuck in the pit stop and went down to fifth. Tough day, but it was good for bits and pieces.” Tristan Vautier: “We were in the fight for a podium with Renger (van der Zande) and it was a tough battle. Eventually, he got a run on me when I got behind a GT entering the Kink. We raced really hard, knowing it was for a podium spot. He squeezed me quite hard on the inside to brake on the damp side of the track and we both broke really late and that got us off-line and allowed the 02 to go through. No regrets. The team worked really hard and had a great strategy. We gave it a fight; it just didn’t play out our way today. It was good to be in the lead in mixed conditions. We showed as a team that we could be in the lead and manage it. It was good to be at the front, but only the result counts. We have to move forward to the next one because this one hurts.” No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R (finished sixth)Olivier Pla: “From the beginning of my stint there was a drizzle all the time. Overall, we were missing speed this weekend for some reason. We were expecting much more and Pipo and I are not happy. We need keep our heads down, keep working going to Petit Le Mans. I think it’s going to be a good place for us.” Pipo Derani: “It wasn’t an easy race. Unfortunately, we were caught up in all sorts of situations. Unlucky in most of them. Eventually, when we were going to be really close to the other DPis on the restart, a P3 moves and I had to take avoiding action hitting the board. So, just before the restart I had to come in and clear the board that was stuck to the front of the car. Difficult race for us. Never really getting a break to try something. It’s been a difficult season, so we’re going to regroup and we have one more chance to finish on a high. Despite a difficult season we never give up and see if we can have a good race next time around.”

Championship Leader Controls All 55 Laps for $20,000 Payday

PEVELY, MO – August 6, 2022 – There was simply no denying Brad Sweet on Saturday night at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55.

As a three-time champion and winner of 77 career Features with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, the Grass Valley, CA native is still finding ways to knock out those first-career achievements with The Greatest Show on Dirt.

In July, he finally earned his first-career win at Williams Grove Speedway, and on Saturday, he finally tamed the iconic Ironman 55 presented by Festus Tourism Commission. “The Big Cat” has long been successful at the Pevely, MO 1/3-mile – proven by his now five-career wins at the track – but the track’s flagship event had always eluded him until tonight.

Earning the pole position with his Series-best fifth win in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash, Sweet quickly assumed the point and never relinquished it throughout 55 laps. The Kasey Kahne Racing, NAPA Auto Parts #49 was in impeccable form, building an advantage as large as 4+ seconds at one point, and surviving a trio of restarts with ease.

It was a bit of redemption for the current championship leader, who lost Friday’s Night Before the Ironman in heartbreaking fashion when lap traffic allowed Carson Macedo to instantly close and complete a Hail Mary slider. The 36-year-old kept that in mind as he destroyed the field in Saturday’s $20,000-to-win Feature.

“After last night, I felt like we had something to prove and I was pretty pissed off to be honest,” Sweet admitted. “I let my guys down and I didn’t do my job to deliver the win we needed and deserved. Team morale and confidence are a big thing in this sport and now we’re heading to the Knoxville Nationals after dominating 55 laps on the hardest track of the year. It’s nice to finally add this one to the resume.”

Although the 2018 Knoxville Nationals champion controlled Saturday’s show from green to checkered, he never felt at ease in the cockpit.

“You just don’t have any time to relax at this race track,” Sweet continued. “You’re constantly searching for a faster line and I felt like I drove 48 good laps, but there were some mistakes in there when I went looking for things. Luckily this car was so good that I could maneuver a little better than others. I was definitely a little extra tense about getting this one.”

Trailing Sweet’s NAPA #49 for all 55 laps was Carson Macedo in the Jason Johnson Racing, Albaugh #41. Unlike Friday night, there was no late-race magic to spoil Sweet’s party this time. The Lemoore, CA native did receive his golden opportunity when the caution flew on Lap 50 and lined him up on Sweet’s rear bumper, but nothing could deter the #49 from cruising to a 1.396-second margin of victory.

“I think we were competitive again and felt like we executed really well, but Brad was just so damn good in that Feature,” Macedo mentioned on chasing Sweet. “He could move around and make it work wherever he needed. I feel like last year we weren’t nearly this good at Pevely, so to come here with two wins and a second is pretty awesome. I’m pumped up for Knoxville.”

Completing the exact same trio of podium finishers for the second night in a row was James McFadden in his Roth Motorsports #83. He’ll head to the Knoxville Nationals carrying loads of speed and confidence hoping to add that first win of the season to his belt.

“He spanked us,” McFadden said on Sweet. “When there’s a middle like that, Brad is the guy to beat. We were competitive with Carson and I had a really good battle with Donny, too. I love racing with Donny, a guy as good as him, and how he races you. Those guys out front were in another world, but it was fun battling our little bubble tonight. I hope I can win this race one day, we’ve been close several times now. Onto Knoxville.”

Donny Schatz finished in fourth for the second straight night aboard his Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing, Ford Performance, Carquest Auto Parts #15. Rounding out the top five was Sheldon Haudenschild, who charged from 19th to fifth to earn KSE Hard Charger honors in the Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #17.

Closing out the top-10 in Saturday’s 55-lapper was Rico Abreu in sixth, Brock Zearfoss in seventh, Justin Peck in eighth, Noah Gass in ninth, and Spencer Bayston in tenth.

NOS NOTEBOOK (I-55 Raceway, 8/6/22)

Brad Sweet’s 77th career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series win brings him to seven wins away from tying Stevie Smith (84) for 10th on the All-Time Wins List.

David Gravel opened the night with his 95th career World of Outlaws QuickTime, circling I-55 in 10.512 seconds to lead My Place Hotels Qualifying. Gravel, Hunter Schuerenberg, Logan Schuchart, and Brock Zearfoss scored Saturday’s NOS Energy Drink Heat Races.

Following his actions at Weedsport Speedway last Sunday – which included pushing and pulling a Series official, throwing safety equipment onto a live track, and making obscene gestures towards the crowd – Sheldon Haudenshild received a fine of $1,000 to be paid by September 1, 2022.

UP NEXT (Wed-Sat) – The Greatest Show on Dirt now prepares for The Granddaddy of ‘Em All. The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series is heading for The Sprint Car Capital of the World, Knoxville, Iowa. A field of 100+ entries will compete for a million-dollar purse in the 61st NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s from Wednesday-Saturday, August 10-13. Fans can BUY TICKETS HERE, or watch every lap LIVE on DIRTVision.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (55 Laps) – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [1][$20,000]; 2. 41-Carson Macedo [2][$6,000]; 3. 83-James McFadden [3][$3,500]; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [4][$2,800]; 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [19][$2,500]; 6. 24-Rico Abreu [13][$2,300]; 7. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [7][$2,200]; 8. 13-Justin Peck [10][$2,100]; 9. 20G-Noah Gass [11][$2,050]; 10. 5-Spencer Bayston [12][$2,000]; 11. 83JR-Kerry Madsen [9][$1,600]; 12. 2-David Gravel [5][$1,400]; 13. 1AU-Marcus Dumesny [14][$1,200]; 14. 51B-Joe B-Miller [21][$1,100]; 15. 11K-Kraig Kinser [20][$1,050]; 16. 84-Brandon Hanks [23][$1,000]; 17. 1S-Logan Schuchart [6][$1,000]; 18. 9JR-Derek Hagar [22][$1,000]; 19. 3N-Jake Neuman [24][$1,000]; 20. 7S-Robbie Price [15][$1,000]; 21. 101-Lachlan McHugh [17][$1,000]; 22. 25-JJ Hickle [16][$1,000]; 23. 1A-Jacob Allen [18][$1,000]; 24. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [8][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: Brad Sweet 1-55. KSE Hard Charger Award: 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[+14]

NEW Championship Standings (After 47/77 Races) – 1. Brad Sweet (6,380); 2. David Gravel (-68); 3. Carson Macedo (-114); 4. Sheldon Haudenschild (-150); 5. Donny Schatz (-184); 6. Logan Schuchart (-224); 7. James McFadden (-356); 8. Spencer Bayston (-372); 9. Jacob Allen (-616); 10. Brock Zearfoss (-688).

Championship Leader Controls All 55 Laps for $20,000 Payday

PEVELY, MO – August 6, 2022 – There was simply no denying Brad Sweet on Saturday night at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55.

As a three-time champion and winner of 77 career Features with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, the Grass Valley, CA native is still finding ways to knock out those first-career achievements with The Greatest Show on Dirt.

In July, he finally earned his first-career win at Williams Grove Speedway, and on Saturday, he finally tamed the iconic Ironman 55 presented by Festus Tourism Commission. “The Big Cat” has long been successful at the Pevely, MO 1/3-mile – proven by his now five-career wins at the track – but the track’s flagship event had always eluded him until tonight.

Earning the pole position with his Series-best fifth win in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash, Sweet quickly assumed the point and never relinquished it throughout 55 laps. The Kasey Kahne Racing, NAPA Auto Parts #49 was in impeccable form, building an advantage as large as 4+ seconds at one point, and surviving a trio of restarts with ease.

It was a bit of redemption for the current championship leader, who lost Friday’s Night Before the Ironman in heartbreaking fashion when lap traffic allowed Carson Macedo to instantly close and complete a Hail Mary slider. The 36-year-old kept that in mind as he destroyed the field in Saturday’s $20,000-to-win Feature.

“After last night, I felt like we had something to prove and I was pretty pissed off to be honest,” Sweet admitted. “I let my guys down and I didn’t do my job to deliver the win we needed and deserved. Team morale and confidence are a big thing in this sport and now we’re heading to the Knoxville Nationals after dominating 55 laps on the hardest track of the year. It’s nice to finally add this one to the resume.”

Although the 2018 Knoxville Nationals champion controlled Saturday’s show from green to checkered, he never felt at ease in the cockpit.

“You just don’t have any time to relax at this race track,” Sweet continued. “You’re constantly searching for a faster line and I felt like I drove 48 good laps, but there were some mistakes in there when I went looking for things. Luckily this car was so good that I could maneuver a little better than others. I was definitely a little extra tense about getting this one.”

Trailing Sweet’s NAPA #49 for all 55 laps was Carson Macedo in the Jason Johnson Racing, Albaugh #41. Unlike Friday night, there was no late-race magic to spoil Sweet’s party this time. The Lemoore, CA native did receive his golden opportunity when the caution flew on Lap 50 and lined him up on Sweet’s rear bumper, but nothing could deter the #49 from cruising to a 1.396-second margin of victory.

“I think we were competitive again and felt like we executed really well, but Brad was just so damn good in that Feature,” Macedo mentioned on chasing Sweet. “He could move around and make it work wherever he needed. I feel like last year we weren’t nearly this good at Pevely, so to come here with two wins and a second is pretty awesome. I’m pumped up for Knoxville.”

Completing the exact same trio of podium finishers for the second night in a row was James McFadden in his Roth Motorsports #83. He’ll head to the Knoxville Nationals carrying loads of speed and confidence hoping to add that first win of the season to his belt.

“He spanked us,” McFadden said on Sweet. “When there’s a middle like that, Brad is the guy to beat. We were competitive with Carson and I had a really good battle with Donny, too. I love racing with Donny, a guy as good as him, and how he races you. Those guys out front were in another world, but it was fun battling our little bubble tonight. I hope I can win this race one day, we’ve been close several times now. Onto Knoxville.”

Donny Schatz finished in fourth for the second straight night aboard his Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing, Ford Performance, Carquest Auto Parts #15. Rounding out the top five was Sheldon Haudenschild, who charged from 19th to fifth to earn KSE Hard Charger honors in the Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #17.

Closing out the top-10 in Saturday’s 55-lapper was Rico Abreu in sixth, Brock Zearfoss in seventh, Justin Peck in eighth, Noah Gass in ninth, and Spencer Bayston in tenth.

NOS NOTEBOOK (I-55 Raceway, 8/6/22)

Brad Sweet’s 77th career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series win brings him to seven wins away from tying Stevie Smith (84) for 10th on the All-Time Wins List.

David Gravel opened the night with his 95th career World of Outlaws QuickTime, circling I-55 in 10.512 seconds to lead My Place Hotels Qualifying. Gravel, Hunter Schuerenberg, Logan Schuchart, and Brock Zearfoss scored Saturday’s NOS Energy Drink Heat Races.

Following his actions at Weedsport Speedway last Sunday – which included pushing and pulling a Series official, throwing safety equipment onto a live track, and making obscene gestures towards the crowd – Sheldon Haudenshild received a fine of $1,000 to be paid by September 1, 2022.

UP NEXT (Wed-Sat) – The Greatest Show on Dirt now prepares for The Granddaddy of ‘Em All. The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series is heading for The Sprint Car Capital of the World, Knoxville, Iowa. A field of 100+ entries will compete for a million-dollar purse in the 61st NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s from Wednesday-Saturday, August 10-13. Fans can BUY TICKETS HERE, or watch every lap LIVE on DIRTVision.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (55 Laps) – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [1][$20,000]; 2. 41-Carson Macedo [2][$6,000]; 3. 83-James McFadden [3][$3,500]; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [4][$2,800]; 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [19][$2,500]; 6. 24-Rico Abreu [13][$2,300]; 7. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [7][$2,200]; 8. 13-Justin Peck [10][$2,100]; 9. 20G-Noah Gass [11][$2,050]; 10. 5-Spencer Bayston [12][$2,000]; 11. 83JR-Kerry Madsen [9][$1,600]; 12. 2-David Gravel [5][$1,400]; 13. 1AU-Marcus Dumesny [14][$1,200]; 14. 51B-Joe B-Miller [21][$1,100]; 15. 11K-Kraig Kinser [20][$1,050]; 16. 84-Brandon Hanks [23][$1,000]; 17. 1S-Logan Schuchart [6][$1,000]; 18. 9JR-Derek Hagar [22][$1,000]; 19. 3N-Jake Neuman [24][$1,000]; 20. 7S-Robbie Price [15][$1,000]; 21. 101-Lachlan McHugh [17][$1,000]; 22. 25-JJ Hickle [16][$1,000]; 23. 1A-Jacob Allen [18][$1,000]; 24. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [8][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: Brad Sweet 1-55. KSE Hard Charger Award: 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[+14]

NEW Championship Standings (After 47/77 Races) – 1. Brad Sweet (6,380); 2. David Gravel (-68); 3. Carson Macedo (-114); 4. Sheldon Haudenschild (-150); 5. Donny Schatz (-184); 6. Logan Schuchart (-224); 7. James McFadden (-356); 8. Spencer Bayston (-372); 9. Jacob Allen (-616); 10. Brock Zearfoss (-688).

New Zealander is Fifth Different Winner through First Five Series Races

PEVELY, MO – August 7, 2022 – Michael Pickens had just enough momentum coming off Turn 4 to the checkers for a last-second surge past Jacob Denney, earning his first victory at Federated Auto Parts Raceway in Saturday night’s Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented Toyota main event.

Denney grabbed the lead on a restart with 12 to go and was holding off the field by circling the very bottom of the track. Pickens gave chase on a restart with three to go, putting his car on top and blasting around the outside on the last lap. In the final corner, it looked as if Denney would have just enough to hang onto the win, but Pickens’ Toyota-powered Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports car carried enough momentum to edge Denney at the finish by just over a tenth of a second.

Pickens, an accomplished racer from Auckland, New Zealand, became the fifth different winner through the Series’ first five races in its inaugural season.

“I’m not sure if he missed his marks or what, but we made a ton of ground coming off Turn 2 and Turn 4,” said Pickens, 39, who pocketed $5,000 for the victory and is now headed back to his native New Zealand. “It was super tricky trying to hit my marks down there, it was like a long, big run. I had to lay my right rear over it in the black.

“I’ve got a to say a massive, massive thank you to Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports. They put me in this car just for this weekend. I’ve heard so many cool stories about this place. It’s a privilege to race in America, but especially to race at Pevely and get a win. Sitting on that plane for 15 hours out of Houston is going to be a lot shorter ride than it would have been without a win.”

Pickens started from the outside of the front row and grabbed the lead on the initial start of the 30-lapper, but polesitter Chase McDermand recovered and led until the caution on Lap 18. McDermand bounced through the middle of Turns 1 and 2 on the restart and Denney pounced on the opportunity.

Denney led through four more restarts, including one following a red flag when Emillio Hoover flipped with seven to go.

“It definitely sucks, but congratulations to Michael and the whole Dave Mac Dalby crew,” said Denney, of Galloway, OH. “Michael ran a better last three laps than I did. I just didn’t do the best laps I could do when it counted.”

Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series championship points leader Zach Daum charged from 11th to finish third, maintaining a streak of five top-10 finishes, the only driver to accomplish the feat.

“Michael made the middle and the top work,” said Daum, of Pocahontas, IL. “We passed a lot of cars on the bottom and then we kind of fell in line towards the end. We just kept chugging. We’ve been battling some electrical gremlins the past week, I think we finally got those straightened out. The motor runs good, we just need to finish one of these.

Consistency wins championships. I’ve been in championship deals before, I know what it takes. If we keep putting ourselves in this position we’re going to win a race. We just have a few more things to fine tune and then we’ll be alright.”

News & Notes: This weekend’s Xtreme Outlaw Series races at Federated Auto Parts Raceway were run in conjunction with POWRi. … Michael Pickens was quickest overall in Whitz Racing Products Group Qualifying, turning a lap around the high-banked 1/3-mile oval in 12.770 seconds. … Heat race winners included Brenham Crouch, Karter Sarff, Cade Lewis and Chase McDermand, who pulled a “0” for the inversion. … Bryant Wiedeman won the Last Chance Showdown with former NASCAR Truck Series champion Ben Rhodes earning the final transfer to the main event. … Emillio Hoover and Branigan Roark used provisionals to start the Feature.

Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series Feature Results (30 laps) – 1. 08$-Michael Pickens[2][$5,000]; 2. 61-Jacob Denney[3]; 3. 9M-Zach Daum[11]; 4. 21K-Karter Sarff[8]; 5. 01-Bryant Wiedeman[17]; 6. 40-Chase McDermand[1]; 7. 26-Chance Crum[5]; 8. 97-Brenham Crouch[6]; 9. 25K-Taylor Reimer[12]; 10. 84X-Jesse Love[9]; 11. 71M-Cade Lewis[7]; 12. 7U-Kyle Jones[4]; 13. 51B-Joe B Miller[14]; 14. 84-Jade Avedisian[15]; 15. 06-Rylan Gray[13]; 16. 97K-Ben Rhodes[20]; 17. 71K-Dominic Gorden[18]; 18. 44-Branigan Roark[22]; 19. 19AZ-Hayden Reinbold[16]; 20. 21E-Emilio Hoover[21]; 21. 7-Shannon McQueen[19]; 22. 97A-Mitchell Davis[10].

NEW Championship Standings (After 5/10 races) – 1. Zach Daum (1062); 2. Brenham Crouch (-60); 3. Bryant Wiedeman (-78); 4. Kyle Jones (-136); 5. Taylor Reimer (-155); 6. Chance Crum (-167); 7. Sam Johnson (-250); 8. Jade Avedisian (-261); 9. Dominic Gorden (-283); 10. Ethan Mitchell (-344).

Next Up: The Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota joins the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models Aug. 26-27 at Davenport Speedway in a couple of $4,000-to-win showdowns.

New Zealander is Fifth Different Winner through First Five Series Races

PEVELY, MO – August 7, 2022 – Michael Pickens had just enough momentum coming off Turn 4 to the checkers for a last-second surge past Jacob Denney, earning his first victory at Federated Auto Parts Raceway in Saturday night’s Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented Toyota main event.

Denney grabbed the lead on a restart with 12 to go and was holding off the field by circling the very bottom of the track. Pickens gave chase on a restart with three to go, putting his car on top and blasting around the outside on the last lap. In the final corner, it looked as if Denney would have just enough to hang onto the win, but Pickens’ Toyota-powered Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports car carried enough momentum to edge Denney at the finish by just over a tenth of a second.

Pickens, an accomplished racer from Auckland, New Zealand, became the fifth different winner through the Series’ first five races in its inaugural season.

“I’m not sure if he missed his marks or what, but we made a ton of ground coming off Turn 2 and Turn 4,” said Pickens, 39, who pocketed $5,000 for the victory and is now headed back to his native New Zealand. “It was super tricky trying to hit my marks down there, it was like a long, big run. I had to lay my right rear over it in the black.

“I’ve got a to say a massive, massive thank you to Dave Mac Dalby Motorsports. They put me in this car just for this weekend. I’ve heard so many cool stories about this place. It’s a privilege to race in America, but especially to race at Pevely and get a win. Sitting on that plane for 15 hours out of Houston is going to be a lot shorter ride than it would have been without a win.”

Pickens started from the outside of the front row and grabbed the lead on the initial start of the 30-lapper, but polesitter Chase McDermand recovered and led until the caution on Lap 18. McDermand bounced through the middle of Turns 1 and 2 on the restart and Denney pounced on the opportunity.

Denney led through four more restarts, including one following a red flag when Emillio Hoover flipped with seven to go.

“It definitely sucks, but congratulations to Michael and the whole Dave Mac Dalby crew,” said Denney, of Galloway, OH. “Michael ran a better last three laps than I did. I just didn’t do the best laps I could do when it counted.”

Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series championship points leader Zach Daum charged from 11th to finish third, maintaining a streak of five top-10 finishes, the only driver to accomplish the feat.

“Michael made the middle and the top work,” said Daum, of Pocahontas, IL. “We passed a lot of cars on the bottom and then we kind of fell in line towards the end. We just kept chugging. We’ve been battling some electrical gremlins the past week, I think we finally got those straightened out. The motor runs good, we just need to finish one of these.

Consistency wins championships. I’ve been in championship deals before, I know what it takes. If we keep putting ourselves in this position we’re going to win a race. We just have a few more things to fine tune and then we’ll be alright.”

News & Notes: This weekend’s Xtreme Outlaw Series races at Federated Auto Parts Raceway were run in conjunction with POWRi. … Michael Pickens was quickest overall in Whitz Racing Products Group Qualifying, turning a lap around the high-banked 1/3-mile oval in 12.770 seconds. … Heat race winners included Brenham Crouch, Karter Sarff, Cade Lewis and Chase McDermand, who pulled a “0” for the inversion. … Bryant Wiedeman won the Last Chance Showdown with former NASCAR Truck Series champion Ben Rhodes earning the final transfer to the main event. … Emillio Hoover and Branigan Roark used provisionals to start the Feature.

Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series Feature Results (30 laps) – 1. 08$-Michael Pickens[2][$5,000]; 2. 61-Jacob Denney[3]; 3. 9M-Zach Daum[11]; 4. 21K-Karter Sarff[8]; 5. 01-Bryant Wiedeman[17]; 6. 40-Chase McDermand[1]; 7. 26-Chance Crum[5]; 8. 97-Brenham Crouch[6]; 9. 25K-Taylor Reimer[12]; 10. 84X-Jesse Love[9]; 11. 71M-Cade Lewis[7]; 12. 7U-Kyle Jones[4]; 13. 51B-Joe B Miller[14]; 14. 84-Jade Avedisian[15]; 15. 06-Rylan Gray[13]; 16. 97K-Ben Rhodes[20]; 17. 71K-Dominic Gorden[18]; 18. 44-Branigan Roark[22]; 19. 19AZ-Hayden Reinbold[16]; 20. 21E-Emilio Hoover[21]; 21. 7-Shannon McQueen[19]; 22. 97A-Mitchell Davis[10].

NEW Championship Standings (After 5/10 races) – 1. Zach Daum (1062); 2. Brenham Crouch (-60); 3. Bryant Wiedeman (-78); 4. Kyle Jones (-136); 5. Taylor Reimer (-155); 6. Chance Crum (-167); 7. Sam Johnson (-250); 8. Jade Avedisian (-261); 9. Dominic Gorden (-283); 10. Ethan Mitchell (-344).

Next Up: The Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota joins the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models Aug. 26-27 at Davenport Speedway in a couple of $4,000-to-win showdowns.

The Blairsville, GA driver led all 100-laps to earn $50,000 prizeNEW RICHMOND, WI – AUGUST 7, 2022 – Jonathan Davenport added another piece of history to his impressive 2022 resume Saturday night at Cedar Lake Speedway.The Blairsville, GA driver held off Chris Madden in the final 10 laps Saturday at Cedar Lake to win his second consecutive USA Nationals, joining Billy Moyer and Jackie Boggs as the only drivers to win the event in back-to-back seasons.  Davenport led all 100 laps to score his fourth World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series Feature win of 2022. However, it came one night after he felt his car needed to get better.  A few small changes helped him get back on track and score the $50,000 prize.  “We just made minor changes,” Davenport said. “I felt the balance was pretty good; there’s a couple of stipulations to the car and a couple of things I didn’t really like about it. So, we made some minor shock adjustments, a shock change, a spring change, and just some little stuff here and there.  “We didn’t get crazy, but just a few adjustments to make me a little bit more comfortable.” Despite leading every lap, Tyler Erb nosed ahead of Davenport on two occasions, throwing a slide job to take the spot each time. Davenport stole the lead back on the first attempt, and then a caution negated “Terbo’s” pass the second time. Once that happened, Davenport knew what to expect from the New Waverly, TX driver.  “I knew where he was at, “Davenport said. “Obviously, if he slid me in (Turn) 3, I knew he was running the top in (Turns) 1 and 2. I was just moving my line around. It moved quite a few times there. It started out in the middle, and finally, it went all the way to the wall around the cushion, and then I kind of moved back to the bottom.” Erb slipped to third at the end of the race, despite challenging for the lead in the middle stages. “Terbo’s” face had a smile showing satisfaction, but his eyes were burning in frustration knowing he had a chance to be “Superman’s” kryptonite. “I was trying to save, save, and save [my stuff], and when [a chance] presented itself, I let it rip for all she had,” Erb said. “I was honestly able to get by him fairly easy, I thought. The problem is the way him and Madden were running, the only way I was going to pass them was to slide them, and I couldn’t keep my momentum all the way around them.  “So, I slid him the first time and slid him the second time, and I was finally going to be clear the next lap. We were good enough to have a chance, just not good enough to finish it all the way off.” While Erb battled with Davenport for the lead, he also waged war with Madden several times for second. The Gray Court, SC driver, won that battle but fell short of a potential fifth $50,000 prize of the season. “Smokey” stated he couldn’t get the momentum he needed to sneak by Davenport in traffic.  “We just caught those lap cars at the right time,” Madden said. “[Garrett Smith) was running kind of low, and then when we caught him, I was running the middle and the [top] just carrying my momentum, and I guess [Davenport] just got his nose under him and moved him up. When he moved up, he was right in my line.” “We had a great race car, but we had a lot of cautions that broke my momentum quite a few times. That hurt us, but that’s part of it. We’re trying to keep working on this thing and find what we can do to get better on some shorter runs.” Ricky Weiss crossed the line fourth. The Headingly, MB driver made the battle for second a three-car affair with Madden and Erb a few times but fell behind them in the final few laps.  He stated his right front tire went away, costing him a chance at the win. “The right front gave up a little bit when I got alongside Madden,” Weiss said. “We were real good; I could see [Davenport’s] right front give up and change his line, and then Madden was next, so then mine was next.” Four-time and reigning Series champion Brandon Sheppard rounded out the top-five. The New Berlin, IL driver felt the track threw him a curveball, with rain in the New Richmond, WI area throughout the day.  “The track was not your typical Cedar Lake, for sure,” Sheppard said. “I think we had a good car, but I was just moving around trying to pass guys so much that you’d overheat your tires really fast. Then, you kind of have to just get back in that middle line.  “I think our car was overall pretty decent. Like I said, we just didn’t pass cars earlier in the race, and I was kind of trying to save my stuff for the end. But at the end, it was really hard to pass. It was not the typical Cedar Lake racetrack for sure, and I’m sure the rain had a lot to do with it.” A second consecutive USA Nationals victory for Jonathan Davenport continues his impressive resume of high dollar wins in 2022. It’s a historical victory that Blairsville, GA driver will cherish. “Something’s got to pay off,” Davenport said. “It’s very rewarding to come out here and do good.” UP NEXT: The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet travel to the Northeast for three nights of high-octane action. The weekend kicks off on Friday, Aug. 19, with a trip to Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, PA. Then, the Series returns to Sharon Speedway in Hartford, OH, on Saturday, Aug. 20. Finally, the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models head to Tri-City Raceway Park in Franklin, PA, on Sunday, Aug. 21. If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App.35th Annual USA Nationals (100 Laps): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 2. 44-Chris Madden[2]; 3. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 4. 7-Ricky Weiss[10]; 5. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[5]; 6. 157-Mike Marlar[20]; 7. 111V-Max Blair[15]; 8. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[25]; 9. 18-Shannon Babb[22]; 10. 97-Cade Dillard[21]; 11. 76-Brandon Overton[18]; 12. 81E-Tanner English[7]; 13. B1-Brent Larson[26]; 14. 10S-Garrett Smith[17]; 15. 49T-Jake Timm[3]; 16. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[9]; 17. 58-Ashton Winger[8]; 18. 16-Tyler Bruening[23]; 19. 32-Bobby Pierce[6]; 20. 8-Kyle Strickler[13]; 21. 19R-Ryan Gustin[14]; 22. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[27]; 23. 25-Shane Clanton[12]; 24. 25F-Jason Feger[19]; 25. 55C-Chad Mahder[16]; 26. 11-Gordy Gundaker[24]; 27. 20-Jimmy Owens[11]; 28. 10-Joseph Joiner[28] FOX FACTORY HARD CHARGER: Dennis Erb Jr. [+17]

The World of Outlaws Case Construction Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Case Construction Equipment (Official Construction Equipment), DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); contingency sponsors include Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, Fox Factory (Hard Charger Award), MSD, My Place Hotels, Penske Racing Shocks, Quarter Master, Swift Springs, and Wrisco–Wieland Metal Services (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including Dirt Car Lift, Capital Race Cars, Behrent’s Performance Warehouse, FIREBULL, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics, Reliable Painting, Rocket Chassis, and Sea Foam.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIX STREETS OF NASHVILLE NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE TEAM CHEVY POLE QUALIFYING RECAP AUGUST 6, 2022

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN PUTS CHEVY ON POLE AT NASHVILLECOLLECTS 2ND CAREER NTT INDYCAR SERIES P1 AWARD  NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE (August 6, 2022) – Mother Nature played havoc with NTT Qualifying for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix for the NTT INDYCAR Series. With heavy rain and lightning, the 3:15 p.m. scheduled start time was delayed until 5:00 p.m. Scott McLaughlin knew if he got the opportunity to qualify the No. 3 Dex Imaging Team Penske  Chevrolet , and things went as planned, he would be in the conversation for the pole. He wasn’t just in the conversation, he is the talk of Music City. With a lap of one minute, 14.555 seconds, he carried the second NTT P1 Award of his INDYCAR career back to his crew after topping the other five drivers in the Firestone Fast Six. Fellow Team Chevy Drivers Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet, and teammate Josef Newgarden, No. 2 PPG Chevrolet, will also start in the first three rows. O’Ward will roll off fifth and Newgarden will start sixth in his hometown race.Romain Grojean, Christian Lundgaard and Alex Palou were the other drivers in the final round of qualifying. Sunday’s race coverage starts at 2:00 CT on NBC and the race will be 80-laps/168-miles. .TEAM PENSKEJOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 PPG CHE22ND:VROLET, QUALIFIED 6TH:“I think we had really good potential to be in the pole conversation. Getting into the Fast Six was positive but we tried a different tire strategy than everyone else and it didn’t quite pan out for us. It’s a little frustrating but I do think we’re in a really good spot for Sunday. Team Penske has had really fast cars all weekend and that always bodes well for the race. We’re excited to be here racing in Nashville with PPG and Team Chevy and we’ll be looking for a good day tomorrow.” SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, NO. 3 DEX IMAGING CHEVROLET, POLE WINNER:“This Dex car has been really good. We won St. Pete with it. Won at Mid-Ohio when the guys were wearing these suits. Now I’m on Pole at Nashville which is a great track. I’m really proud of the Dex Chevy and the guys. The car was phenomenal. To do that on one lap used tires is amazing. Oh man, really good lap. “I think more of the same Kevin, I don’t know. We just got our heads down and our bums up and then just wondering. I’m proud of this group, proud of this team. If I have really good pit stops tomorrow, my Thirsty Threes have got plenty support. So we’ll have a bit of fun. “ WILL POWER, NO. 12 VERIZON 5G CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 7TH“It’s definitely disappointing to not get a chance to fight for the pole because we’ve had a fast Verizon 5G Chevy all weekend. But that’s the rules and we weren’t able to advance to the final round. We know we have good cars here and we will have to work on our strategy to try and get to the front. We know what we have to do tomorrow.” ED CARPENTER RACINGCONOR DALY, NO. 20 BITNILE CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 22ND: “Today was a tough day for us. We have made the car better in every session, but we just seem to be missing a bit still. Hopefully, we can keep working on it overnight and go racing tomorrow. Anything can happen here obviously, we’ll just try to take advantage of everything situation we can and keep moving forward.” RINUS VEEKEY, NO, 21 BITCOIN RACING WITH BITNILE CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 10TH: “After being 22nd in practice, I am pretty happy to be starting P10! We were almost two seconds faster than we were in practice, we took a really big chunk of time off. It’s important at this place to stay as far ahead of as much as you can. We are ahead of a lot, I think we will be fine. And I probably deserve to wear my cowboy hat again!” ARROW MCLAREN SPPATO O’WARD, NO.5 ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 5TH:“After qualifying, we are P5 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet. That was pretty good considering where we were in practice. We executed, but it was pretty sketchy out there. We got some work to do. It’s going to be a crazy race once again. I don’t think it’s going to be a calm race, and many are on the same page as I am. So, we’ll see what we’ve got tomorrow in warmup and then try to be on the right strategy for the race.” FELIX ROSENQVIST, NO. 7 ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 15TH:“We didn’t really have the opportunity to do a lap in qualifying, and it was the same for Rossi. I mean, we just didn’t do anything all session; we just pounded around yellows and red flags, then all of a sudden we’re out in Round 1. So, it’s a shame, especially when I had one more turn to finish that last lap. I definitely thought we could have another pole here and we’ve felt really strong all weekend, so it sucks. We’ll try to go through the field tomorrow.” AJ FOYT RACINGDALTON KELLETT, NO. 4 K-LINE CHEVROLET, QUALIFED 12TH: “We just posted our best qualifying of the 2022 season so far and it feels really great just to get that No. 4 K-Line Chevy into the Firestone Fast 12 on a great weekend here in Nashville. Lots of interesting stuff going on, we had the Firestone guayule green alternate tires on which were coming up to temp really quick. It was kind of a parallel to the St. Pete qualifying where we did quite well. It seems like when we can get the tires to activate quickly and really just make it happen on that first lap, we seem to have an advantage there. We really press that advantage by just making sure we got ahead of the order of things as far as greens coming out to transfer so that’s something to look at. Very proud of this team overall for the result that we got here today.” KYLE KIRKWOOD, NO. 14 SEXTON PROPERTIES CHEVROLET, QUALIFED 16TH“I have to say we don’t really have the pace that everyone else gets out of their cars on the green tires for whatever reason. Fortunately, we assume it’s going to be a primary race tomorrow with the primary black tires, which we’ve been very quick on. Very quick on them in practice one, and we’re super quick on them practice two. We’ve got the car in a good place. So tomorrow if it’s black race, a primary race and everything stays dry, we’re going to be quick.”  JUNCOS HOLLIGER RACINGCALLUM ILOTT, NO.77 JUNCOS HOLLINGER RACING CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED, 19TH: “I didn’t get one flying lap in because every time I came out there was a car in the wall. I don’t understand why we can’t pause the time in qualifying, we have had this argument quite a few times, so in the end it just causes problems. The car felt good, I was up for a good lap when I put the greens on, but obviously it ended. I’m not very happy, but I can’t change the outcome.”  PARETTA AUTOSPORTSIMONA DE SILVESTRO, NO. 16 ACUMATICA CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 21ST: NTT INDYCAR SERIES News ConferenceScott McLaughlinPato O’WardPress Conference THE MODERATOR: We are joined by the pole winner for tomorrow’s race, Scott McLaughlin, second career pole, 61st in your Team Penske career, which snaps the tie you previously had with Helio Castroneves. You lead the way. Congratulations for that.SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, I really wanted that one. Thank you.THE MODERATOR: Scott, your thoughts about P1?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, just stoked, man. The car has been just absolutely phenomenal all weekend since we really rolled out the truck. We massaged it overnight, came out with a beauty today. Really haven’t touch it apart from a little bit of front wing.It’s a credit to Ben and then the team, DEX Imaging Chevy car is good. I’m really excited for tomorrow. I think it’s obviously going to be a pretty blockbuster, crazy race. To start from the front, last year I think I started from Narnia last year, I don’t know where I was. I was 20th. So it’s going to be a lot easier to start, control the pace hopefully, and see where we go.Q. Scott, pole here. This could be a crazy race. Four races to go. Team Penske is definitely strong at Gateway. Do you feel you still have an outside shot at this championship with where you are starting tomorrow?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, the belief is there absolutely. I’ve said it all along, I feel like a little bit of an underdog in this. There’s no reason why we can’t go on a run. These are four tracks that I really enjoy.I mean, Gateway we ran fourth. Portland I out-qualified my teammates. Feel like our cars are quicker there this year. No reason why we can’t be fast there again. Laguna, I love that track. I just made a mess of qualifying, as I did all last year.Really excited for this final run. Anything can happen. It’s INDYCAR. We have a solid week, focus on ourselves, who knows what will happen.Yeah, certainly a position I’m not unfamiliar with, that’s for sure.THE MODERATOR: Joined also by Pato O’Ward, fifth in the championship. He’ll start fifth tomorrow.Advancing to the Firestone Fast Six, fifth place, you’ll take it I’m assuming?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, we’ll take it. I think tomorrow’s race is going to be maybe not quite as hectic as last year, but I think it’s going to be pretty crazy.It’s pretty unpredictable out there. I think all you guys can agree, no?PATO O’WARD: Oh, it’s going to rain. Even better (smiling).So, yeah, we’ll take that. I think we can work from there, for sure.THE MODERATOR: Questions for all four.Q. Scott, you had a forgettable race here last year. How do you prepare mentally to come back this year?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, just another race, man. I think we just knew we had (indiscernible). It was a matter of getting a car that could feel a bit more at home with. I liked the track instantly. Yeah, just put it together once we got here.No, I feel really ready to go for tomorrow. Felt ready to go for this weekend. Can’t wait for what’s ahead.Q. Scott, if I understand it right, leader has discretion in INDYCAR, they want you to go middle of the bridge. Josef was saying wait until the end. Do you have any plan?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Where should I go?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: We will sort it out. I’m a nice guy. Don’t know what you’re talking about.Yeah, I don’t know. I got to look back at the notes honestly. I look at that briefly. If we qualify well, I’ll focus on that and see where I’m going to go.Q. You haven’t even thought about it?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: No, nothing. I’m just glad that the race starts on that side. I think it’s going to make it flow a lot better, help the race get going, get into a bit of a rhythm. I’m sure there’s going to be a few dive bombs out there, but I’m sure it’s going to be fine.Q. Pato, in the morning practice you looked like you were pretty hot. You said they don’t let you run a cool suit.PATO O’WARD: Yeah, we don’t have them. It’s horrible in the car. It’s unbearable. Like, I think this is probably going to be the worst race. Yeah, I cannot explain how horrendous it is inside of the car.Like tomorrow they’ll probably mandate the roof scoops. But, yeah, I mean, every braking zone, I’m having to clear my sweat because there’s no ventilation in the car. Every braking zone, even with me trying to clear it out, I’m still like splatting sweat all over my visor. It’s horrible.Q. Is that a team performance thing?PATO O’WARD: No. I think first of all we don’t have the systems. Two, I think as a team we just haven’t looked into it. We have sort of, but, yeah, we don’t have ’em here. Maybe something to look into next year for sure.I didn’t think it was going to be this bad. It’s worse than what I remember last year being. It’s really, really bad.Q. With all of you being in group two, did you learn anything from the cars that went out before you guys with all the rain washing away the rubber on the track?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Showed how much the track had lost grip. As soon as there was a run on it, it was pretty quick. I think a second run for them would have been pretty similar to a first run for us probably.Q. Pato, starting in the second row for this race, knowing where you are in the championship, is this starting to become an almost must-win?PATO O’WARD: I feel like this year, whether you start — I mean, the worst crash last year, or I guess the worst crash that could continue, won last year. I guess it doesn’t really matter where you start, thinking of what the history has been here.It’s a good place to start. There’s just going to be I think a lot of yellows. Maybe I’ll be proven wrong. I don’t think we’re going to go full green. I just don’t see that happening with how hot it’s getting inside the cars, with how long the races are, with how hot it’s going to be. People are going to get tired, touch a wall here or there. There’s going to be mishaps for sure.You can be pole, you can be second or third. We’re starting in the first three rows. A yellow falls not in your favor, you’re going straight to the back.I think tomorrow it’s going to be all about nailing and having some Lady Luck with the strategy because I don’t think it’s going to matter where you start. I think someone with a good car in the back, they nail on a good yellow, they’re going to go straight to the front and they’re going to stay there.Q. Scott, if we get a mixed bag weather-wise tomorrow, what’s that going to do to the grip levels, bearing in mind there’s different types of surfaces around this track? Is that going to upset the balance of the car for you?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, look, no doubt it’s going to be a pretty crazy race. Last year’s was pretty long in bone-dry conditions. I’m sure with a little bit of rain it’s going to be crazy.A lot of painted lines in the middle of apexes here on tight corners with no room for error. I sort of looked at that before. I thought we might have had a bit of wet then. I was trying to figure out where the lines were and whatnot.Yeah, it’s pretty crazy. We’ll see what happens during the race.Q. Watching in the sessions, it reminds me a lot of the backside of the Adelaide street circuit. Probably with the impact you’re seeing in terms of ventilation, how hot you’re getting in the car…SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: It’s pretty warm. The biggest problem is the humidity, I think. When you slow down and come into the pits, the heat soak just builds so quickly.But I’m sort of like ever since my Super Car days have always been a guy that doesn’t wear a cool suit because I think it’s worse if you have one fail. It’s just boiling water rolling around your body.I’m actually okay with running the top duct and the helmet fan, or the helmet air. But it’s going to be a hot race. Like Pato said, it’s going to be the hottest race that we’ve had. Hopefully with all the training all season is going to set us up well for that and we’ll be all right.Q. For you young guys, what do you think of the vibe of this event? Is it really kind of a place…SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I’m still in my 20s, but that’s fine. Don’t worry about me (laughter).PATO O’WARD: The vibe’s dope, bro.Q. Is it almost difficult to not want to go out?PATO O’WARD: Oh, I’m not a big party-er.PATO O’WARD: No, seriously. I enjoy staying in my hotel. I love the food that’s around here. There’s some great spots. I’m going to a great one tonight. I forgot the name. It’s a sushi/Chinese.Q. Really in the heart of everything in Nashville. All you have to go is go across the river…PATO O’WARD: These guys are doing it right. The guys here from this event and what Hy-Vee did in Iowa, they packed up a place in Newton, Iowa. Like if you can pack up a place in Newton, Iowa, you can pack up any other place that we go. They did a phenomenal job.I think everyone can learn from what they’re doing. Like, it’s what it should be. The standard should be this. Yesterday, even Friday, there was quite a bit of people coming out to watch for a Friday. Today was even better. I’m sure tomorrow’s going to be fantastic.Q. When you’re this close to this much activity, you think, I wish I could just go out?PATO O’WARD: Scottie likes it, I can tell.SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: My wife is probably having more fun than any of us. She comes straight in from Broadway. She’s having a good time. But we’re all good. She’s a superstar. Definitely loves this race. Josef is definitely trying to sell the dream about living here, that’s for sure.Q. (No microphone.)PATO O’WARD: Yeah, yeah. Absolutely. I think I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, it’s going to be a sold-out show when we go. I don’t see it not working out because I know the whole country is super up on all the F1 stuff, racing there. I think if INDYCAR goes there, the series as a whole is going to gain a ton of fans.PATO O’WARD: That’s what I’m saying. It also depends, maybe it can be Mexico City or Monterrey, my hometown. I think that could be really cool for INDYCAR to go to Monterrey. If it’s a success, maybe a street course in Cancun or something. That would be good, huh? You like Mexico?PATO O’WARD: To-do list. Add it on there.PATO O’WARD: You’ll love it. It’s awesome.THE MODERATOR: Thank you so much for your time.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

11th

11th

13th

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

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

5th

16th

6th

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

August 6, 2022

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

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

NASCAR CUP SERIES

MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400

TEAM CHEVY POST-QUALIFYING NOTES

AUGUST 6, 2022

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-20 STARTING LINEUP:  

POS.   DRIVER

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

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

10th    ERIK JONES, NO. 43 FOCUSFACTOR CAMARO ZL1

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

13th    CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 UNIFIRST CAMARO ZL1

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

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

TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL STARTING LINEUP:  

POS.  DRIVER

1st      Bubba Wallace (Toyota)

2nd     Christopher Bell (Toyota)

3rd      Kyle Busch (Toyota)  

4th      Joey Logano (Ford)

5th      Austin Cindric (Ford)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

NASCAR CUP SERIES

MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400

TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT

AUGUST 6, 2022

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Four Different Winners in Four Xtreme Outlaw Midget Races

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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