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RAIN POSTPONES JOHN FORCE’S BID FOR FIRST WIN IN NEARLY TWO YEARS


Force is seeking 8th Winternationals title; race to resume in Phoenix in 2 weeks
POMONA, Calif. (March 24, 2024) – Rain prevented John Force, the winningest driver in NHRA history, from potentially earning his first win in nearly two years during final eliminations of Sunday’s Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
As a result, Force will have to wait two weeks before the final round of the Winternationals’ Funny Car competition – Force vs. longtime rival Matt Hagan – will resume as part of the next race weekend, April 5-7, at Firebird Motorsports Park in suburban Phoenix, Ariz.
While a win is not guaranteed to Force, odds are in his favor: he is an undefeated 4-0 in all Winternationals meetings with Hagan (regardless of which round).
The winner of a record 16 NHRA Funny Car championships, Force last won a national event on May 1, 2022, at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte, N.C. He made two final round appearances last season, but finished runner-up each time.
Had Sunday’s rain held off and he would have defeated Hagan, the 74-year-old Force would have earned a record eighth Winternationals victory, and the 267th final round (his overall record is now 155-111) appearance of his storied career.
The weekend didn’t get off to a great start for the driver of the PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car. His solo qualifying effort Friday was disallowed after his car crossed the center line.
Force then bounced back to qualify No. 6 in Saturday’s rain-shortened session (it was supposed to be two rounds, but steady rain in the morning and early afternoon shortened the schedule to just one qualifying attempt that day).
Force got off to a great start in Sunday’s first round of eliminations with a run of 3.959 seconds at 324.12 mph, easily outdistancing opponent Jim Campbell (7.842 seconds at 83.03 mph).
Force kept things going in the second round with another easy victory (4.016 seconds/302.14 mph) over Bobby Bode (4.550 seconds/190.89 mph).
In the semifinals, Force maintained his career supremacy against Ron Capps, now having a 69-55 lead over Capps in head-to-head meetings. Force (3.922 seconds at 327.74 mph) went straight down the middle of the dragstrip, while Capps (8.390 seconds at 95.83 mph) lost traction early on in the run and was unable to recover.
Force took time out to applaud Capps, who had said on the TV broadcast following his previous run about how much he missed John Force Racing president and three-time Funny Car champ Robert Hight not being at the race. Hight is taking time off to address personal medical issues.
“One of the things that was really impressive today was after Capps won the round before when he beat (JFR driver) Austin Prock, he got out and talked about Robert and how much he hated Robert not being here,” Force said. “I thought that was very classy. I’ve always liked Capps but it made me like him even more. Drag racers care about each other and that’s what I like about this sport.”
Then came time for the ultimately washed out final round. Force was eager to face reigning and four-time Funny Car champion Hagan.
“I’ve got a real good hot rod,” Force said. “I think we’re on to something and I’m excited about it. I’ve done well at Phoenix over the years. I love racing Hagan, he’s a great racer and a great champion.”
Force can’t wait to get to Phoenix – and hopefully earn win No. 156.
“It was a good weekend, I’ve got a good hot rod that excites me, wish we could have got it done,” Force said. “We’ll see what happens in Phoenix.”
*******************************In Top Fuel, No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force, John Force’s daughter, fell short of checking off one of the top items on her bucket list – a Winternationals win – losing in the semifinals to Justin Ashley.
Force lost traction about one-third of the way down the dragstrip, ending with a run of 4.626 seconds at 216.13 mph, while Ashley had a run of 4.190 seconds at 296.63 mph.A two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion (2017 and 2022), Force on Saturday recorded her first No. 1 qualifying effort since Denver last summer and the 47th of her career. It was also her fourth No. 1 qualifying effort at the Winternationals.
Driving the Mark Christopher Auto Center Chevrolet/Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster, Force had a fairly easy go of it in the first two rounds of Sunday’s eliminations.
Because only 15 dragsters entered the event, Force had a solo run in the first round (3.714 seconds at a very stout 336.91 mph) by virtue of earning No. 1 qualifier honors on Saturday. 
Then in the second round, Force had another solo run of sorts. Her scheduled opponent, Clay Millican, broke at the starting line and was unable to make a run. Force, meanwhile, covered the 1,000-foot in 3.723 seconds at 333.99 mph.
But Force’s bid for her first-ever win in the Winternationals was abruptly stopped in the semifinals by Ashley.
“Overall, I think we’ve had a very good weekend,” the younger Force said. “This (crew chief) David Grubnic team and this Mark Christopher Chevrolet car ran consistently all weekend long. We made a semifinal round appearance, and looking back at last season, we’re off to a really good start.
“This pumps us all up. Now that we have this momentum that we’re qualifying well and going rounds, it just gets us pumped up for Phoenix.”
*******************************
The third John Force Racing driver, Austin Prock, saw the outstanding streak of runs in his first two races come to a halt.
Prock won his first-ever race in a Funny Car last month in an exhibition event in Bradenton, Fla., and then in his first official NHRA national event, the season-opening Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla., two weeks ago, he was runner-up. He also was No. 1 qualifier in both events.
But not so in Sunday’s eliminations. Prock, who qualified 15th, exited in the first round after his Automobile Club of Southern California/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS lost traction (4.138 seconds at 236.22 mph), losing to Capps (3.891 seconds/328.86 mph).
“It’s drag racing,” a disappointed Prock said. “Obviously, it’s frustrating. My guys did a great job. The thing was truckin’.
“I had my hands full. We’ll get ‘em next weekend. Nothing to hang our heads about. It’s early in the season, I’m learning and just getting it dialed in in different conditions. I’m sure we’ll be strong in Phoenix.”
Prock then added, “It really was an honor driving this Auto Club of Southern California Camaro this weekend. I’ve cheered this car on my whole life and it was pretty damn cool sitting in the seat of it.”
*******************************
Both John and Brittany Force, by respectively reaching at least the semi-final in their classes Sunday, are eligible for the next session of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, which will take place in conjunction with qualifying at the next NHRA national event, the Arizona Nationals.
The Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series continues next with back-to-back events: the Arizona Nationals, April 5-7 at Firebird Motorsports Park in Chandler, Ariz.; and the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, April 12-14 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nev. #2024ORCE 
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Burton Finishes 31st at COTA


March 24, 2024


Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang Dark Horse finished 31st in Sunday’s Echopark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

Burton started Sunday’s 68-lap race over the 20-turn road course from 29th place. An early spin dropped him to 36th place. The team made its first pit stop at Lap 10 and ended the first 15-lap Stage in 33rd place.

After a pit stop on Lap 25, Burton ended Stage Two in 32nd place.

The third and final Stage initially looked much more promising for the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team as Burton, having made his stop before the end of the previous Stage, moved into the top 20 when racing resumed following the Stage break.

Burton pitted from 27th place at Lap 42 then moved into the top 25 just past the 50-lap mark and ran there until a pit stop for fuel at Lap 58 dropped him out of the top 30. There were no caution flags in the race other than for the Stage breaks.

Next up for Burton and the Wood Brothers team is a 400-lapper next Sunday at Richmond Raceway.

 

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RCR NCS Race Recap: Circuit Of The Americas

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Team Earn Stage Points in Hard-Fought Circuit of the Americas Race
26th21st30th
“Despite our best efforts, the No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet team didn’t get the finish we wanted at the Circuit of the Americas today. We earned fifth-place stage points in the first stage, but then had to come from the rear to start Stage 2. It’s tough to do that. We ended up with damage to the front end of our Chevy, and we just never really recovered from that. We got spun and then had to save fuel that last run. We have to figure out what we could have done better in order to be in position to go hard during the last run of the race. Thank you to the RCR team for never giving up. We’ll just keep plugging along.” 

-Austin Dillon
Kyle Busch Scores Ninth-Place Finish in Mark III Employee Benefits Chevrolet at Circuit of the Americas 
9th16th13th
“We had a good finish today in the Mark III Employee Benefits Chevrolet and our guys on pit road were consistent all day. Early in the race, we were loose and losing a lot of grip on the long run. We worked our way into the top-five early in Stage 2 when we got spun out and lost a lot of track position, which put us behind. Crew chief Randall Burnett all the guys on the No. 8 team made great calls, especially on fuel mileage at the end of the race. Hopefully, this gets us back on track.”
 -Kyle Busch
 
       
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Byron, Chevrolet Take First NASCAR Cup Series Road Course Win of 2024 Season

NASCAR CUP SERIES CIRCUIT OF THE AMERICAS ECHO PARK AUTOMOTIVE GRAND PRIX TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT MARCH 24, 2024

Chevrolet’s Fourth NCS Win of 2024
·       William Byron and the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1 team delivered a powerhouse performance at Circuit of The Americas – driving Chevrolet to the victory in the NASCAR Cup Series’ first road course race of the 2024 season. 
·       Byron proved to be a contender throughout the weekend – earning the pole position, points in both stages and leading a race high 42 laps en route to his second win of the season in NASCAR’s top division. 
·       The victory is Byron’s second career NASCAR Cup Series victory on a road course, taking the 26-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina, native to his 12th career triumph in NASCAR’s top division. 
·       The feat marks Chevrolet’s third victory in four NASCAR Cup Series races at Circuit of The Americas, with Byron becoming the third different Chevrolet driver to tally a victory at the 3.41-mile Texas circuit. 
·       Byron’s triumph marks Chevrolet’s 18th victory in the past 23 NASCAR Cup Series road course events – eight of which have come in the Next Gen Camaro ZL1. 
·       Five drivers from four different Chevrolet teams posted top-10 results at Circuit of The Americas, with Byron leading Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman in fourth; Kaulig Racing’s AJ Allmendinger in sixth; Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain in seventh; and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch in ninth. 
·       The victory is Chevrolet’s fourth NASCAR Cup Series win of 2024, with Byron becoming the series’ first repeat winner of the season. 
TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10:  POS.   DRIVER1st William Byron, No. 24 RaptorTough.com Camaro ZL14th Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL16th AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL17th Ross Chastain, No. 1 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL19th Kyle Busch, No. 8 Mark III Employee Benefits Camaro ZL1
Up Next: The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Richmond Raceway with the Toyota Owners 400 on Sunday, March 31, at 7 P.M. ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
 
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES:William Byron, No. 24 RaptorTough.com Camaro ZL1Finished: 1stCONGRATULATIONS ON THE FLAMES YOU LEFT HERE ON YOUR BURNOUT. “Oh yeah, it was fun for sure. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with a long front straightaway like this, but just super thankful for this team. Rudy, all the guys on this race team – it’s pretty amazing what we have been able to do the last couple of years, but we just have to keep working hard and keep it going. Nothing is guaranteed in this sport, and we just have to keep it going.”
WHAT WAS THAT LAST RUN LIKE FOR YOU WHEN YOU KNEW GUYS WERE CHASING YOU AND ESPECIALLY WITH CHRISTOPHER BELL CLOSING IN?“Yeah, he was really fast at the end. The Toyotas had the long run speed kind of all weekend, so for us, it was just trying to get a gap on the short run; manage our tires and just kind of keep our car in a good spot. I definitely gave up a lot of time the last five laps, so we still have work to do.”
WHEN YOU STARTED IN THIS SPORT, DID YOU THINK AT THIS POINT OF YOUR CAREER YOU WOULD ALREADY HAVE TWO ROAD COURSE WINS?“No, honestly the road courses were probably the most difficult thing for us starting out and then we just continued to build on it. We had a lot of pole positions on road courses, but we weren’t able to close the deal. A lot of that was on me and knowing what I need in the car to push the whole race. It’s come a long way.”

Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1Finished: 4th YOU LOOK A LITTLE WORN OUT.. NO NATURAL CAUTIONS TODAY. HOW MUCH DID YOU HAVE TO MANAGE IN THE CAR?“I wouldn’t say I am worn out; I am just bummed. Probably just got stuck out in traffic after our last pit stop. It was a bad spot that I had to run too hard on low air and beat the rear tires up. Kind of inched in on William (Byron) for a bit, but then the rear tires just went away. Yeah, definitely had to manage it some. Definitely some tire fall off here.  
We had a good Ally Camaro, we just needed to hold on to rear grip longer. It’s been the same since we unloaded and we definitely made it better, but still kind of fighting the same thing. Blake and the guys called a good race. We had a good day, just sucks to come up a couple short again.”

AJ Allmendinger, No. 13 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1Finished: 6th“It was a really solid day for the No. 16 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevy team. We started 14th and got up into the top six or seven. Track position is so critical. On one of the pit stops, we got hung up there and lost about five or six spots, and that kind of put us to the next group of cars. We were able to fight back through that. Just really proud of everybody at Kaulig Racing. Of course you always want to win, but it went about as good as it could.”

Ross Chastain, No. 1 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL1Finished: 7th“It was an uneventful day for the No. 1 Worldwide Express Chevy team. We flipped each stage and that kept us up front. When we had the lead, it was the same as all day; just too loose and couldn’t hold William (Byron) off. He was obviously really strong. We made a swing at a big adjustment there at the end on that final green-flag stop and it went the wrong way. It definitely hurt our car. We dropped back a long ways from where we were, but I’m proud of the effort. Proud of the rebound in speed for me and this No. 1 car. My teammates have been really strong at road courses. I’ve been trying for the better part of a year and a half to improve on road courses, and this is a small step in the right direction.” 

Austin Dillon, No. 3 Get Bioethanol Camaro ZL1Finished: 26th “The No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevy team obviously didn’t get the finish that we wanted at COTA. We got fifth-place stage points, and then had to come from the rear. We got damage on the front-end, and we just never really recovered from that. We got spun and then had to save fuel that last run. We have to figure out what we could have done better so we could have gone hard that last run. We’ll just keep plugging along.” 
 
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Mees Responds with Statement Ride at Yamaha Senoia Short Track

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 24, 2024) – Reigning Mission SuperTwins champion Jared Mees(No. 1 Rogers Racing/SDI Racing/Indian Motorcycle FTR750) turned to his successful ‘23 script, once again rebounding from a quiet season opener with a statement performance in the Yamaha Senoia Short Track at Senoia Raceway in Senoia, Georgia, Round 3 of the 2024 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing. That said, Sunday’s ride didn’t exactly get underway as he’d originally envisioned. The factory Indian star was involved in a minor pre-race dispute and was forced to line up on the far outside of Row 1 after believing he could select the slot at the bottom. Even if it went against his wishes, the swap either gifted him the ideal position or the motivation required to make it work, as Mees promptly blasted into the lead once the race got underway. Even with the benefit of that prime launch, Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) was quickly looking for a way by and slid underneath to steal away first less than a minute into the Main Event. But Mees had an answer, reclaiming the position a short two laps later and then went about steadily working his way to what proved to be a 1.591-second margin of victory. Afterward Mees said, “I fast qualified earlier in the day, but I didn’t really feel good. I was making some decent laps but also making a lot of mistakes. In the (Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge), Dallas ate my lunch – I was really worried about him; he and his team were rolling really good. He was really consistent and could get the bike turned, and that’s where I was struggling all day. We made some changes and went a direction we’ve never gone before with some things. And the motorcycle was phenomenal. It turned great and rolled good. Everything I needed it to do all day, it finally came to me.” The fight for third was a hard-fought three-way affair for much of the race, led for a long spell by Johnny Lewis (No. 10 Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650) with Brandon Robinson(No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) and Briar Bauman (No. 3 Rick Ware Racing/KTM/Parts Plus KTM 790 Duke) jammed up close behind. Lewis did well to keep Robinson and Bauman corralled behind him for the majority of the contest, but their superior pace ultimately won out – at least once Bauman showed they could tap into the high line to find a path through. Free of the Royal Enfield runner, Robinson then managed to keep two-time champion Bauman at bay by just over a tenth-of-a-second at the flag. Lewis, meanwhile, found himself also overtaken by a charging Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Ohio Indian FTR750), who secured the final spot in the top five after circulating as low as ninth in the early going. The remainder of the top ten consisted of a pair of premier-class veterans – Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis Shades/Corbin/OTBR Yamaha MT-07) and Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750) – and class rookies – Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Mission Foods/Zanotti Racing KTM 790 Duke) and Max Whale (No. 18 Latus Motors Racing/Liqui Moly Harley-Davidson XG750R). Mees’ triumph elevated him from sixth to third in the points (54), but he continues to trail Daniels (64) and Robinson (61), the duo having upped their respective ‘24 podium streaks to a perfect three for three. Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER Reigning two-time Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER king Kody Kopp (No. 1 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus KTM 450 SX-F) continued to build his case as the most accomplished rider in class history, earning a record-tying sixth career Short Track win on Sunday afternoon. While in the end, the victory proved a lonely one, that order first had to be forged in chaos. Former class champion Dalton Gauthier (No. 79 D&D Racing/Certified KTM 450 SX-F) grabbed the holeshot with title fighters Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F), Chase Saathoff (No. 88 JPG Motorsports Honda CRF450R), and Kopp running alongside while sorting out second in shadow. In one fell swoop, that fight for second became one for the lead as Drane and Saathoff both went under Gauthier at the same moment Kopp ringed around the outside, all despite no obvious mistake on Gauthier’s part. Kopp continued to work the high line, using it to both overhaul Drane and make his escape in relatively short order. At that point, the top three broke apart, while Gauthier lost one final position to Aiden RoosEvans(No. 26 FRA Trust/ATV’s and More Yamaha YZ450F), who ran just removed from the lead pack for the entirety of the race. “I’m happy to be up here and be able to spin laps like that,” Kopp said. “Hats off to Tom, Chase, and Dalton – those first few laps were chaos. I got a terrible start and tried to roll ‘em around the outside. Huge shout out to my Rick Ware Racing team and everybody that’s behind me. We’re ready to get on a roll now.” 2023 Senoia Short Track podium finisher James Ott (No. 19 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450) took sixth, followed by Hunter Bauer (No. 24 Vinson Construction/American Harley-Davidson, Yamaha YZ450F), Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), and Travis Petton IV (No. 82 ECG Racing/A.M Ortega KTM 450 SX-F). The final spot in the top ten was earned by Bradon Pfanders (No. 288 Pfanders Racing/Scott Powersports KTM 450 SX-F), who made an extremely impressive Progressive AFT debut immediately after becoming eligible by turning 16. Kopp already boasts an early 17-point advantage over Gauthier (71-54) with Drane (51) and Saathoff (50) placed third and fourth and desperate to prevent the double defending champ from executing another championship runaway. Next Up: The Progressive American Flat Track tour will compete on a Half-Mile for the first time this season with the Mission Texas Half-Mile presented by Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda and Roof Systems of Dallas at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday, April 27. Please visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/texas-half-mile-86387 to secure your tickets today. For those who can’t catch the action from the circuit, FloRacing is the live streaming home of Progressive AFT. Sign up now and catch every second of on-track action starting with Practice & Qualifying and ending with the Victory Podium at the end of the night at http://flosports.link/aft. FOX Sports coverage of the Yamaha Senoia Short Track, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, March 31, at 12:30 p.m. ET (9:30 a.m. PT). For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com
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HART LOOKS FOR POSITIVES AFTER TOUGH WINTERNATIONALS

POMONA, CA (March 24, 2024) — The focus of the R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster and driver Josh Hart remains chasing their first NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series world championship after two races in the 2024 season. A quarterfinal finish at the season opening NHRA Gatornationals was followed this weekend by a tough first round exit in a close race with veteran driver Billy Torrence. Hart entered race day as the No. 14 qualifier, but he was undeterred by his qualifying position and knew he could give the No. 3 qualifier a tough first round race.


 Josh Hart and R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster launch off the starting line at the Winternationals, photo credit Auto Imagery/Gary Nastase

“I knew we didn’t get everything we wanted out of qualifying and we lost one round of the three to rain on Saturday,” said Hart, a two-time Top Fuel national event winner. “I was ready for the first round and I knew (crew chief) Ron (Douglas) and the guys made a lot of adjustments overnight to speed us up. We just had to see what we could do with this R+L Carrier Top Fuel dragster in the first round.”
 
When Hart rolled up alongside Torrence conditions were vastly different than the two previous days with cooler temperatures and a pristine racetrack. Hart got the jump off the starting line with a strong .043 reaction time and his skill off the line had his dragster in great position to pull the upset. At half-track Hart and the R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster was in the lead, but Torrence was closing the gap. As the finish line closed in Hart’s 12,0000-horsepower land rocket started mixing up cylinders robbing his racecar of power and momentum and Torrence drove around him for the win, 3.716 seconds to 3.903 seconds, which was a much closer race thanks to Hart’s jump off the starting line.
 
“I knew I needed to get a good start off the line and I think I had the second best reaction time of the session,” said Hart. “I couldn’t see him for the longest time, but I saw his nose get out in front right at the finish line. We are going to keep working to get quicker. We are a little behind, but we just need more runs. I am glad we will get to Phoenix and hopefully get all three qualifying runs. That is really what everyone needs and it makes for much better racing.”
 
With one week left in the month of March Josh along with his wife Brittanie leading the charge are working with United with Love food pantry in their hometown of Huntington, Indiana to “Race to Fill the Food Pantry.” Donations made to the during the month of March to United with Love will be matched dollar for dollar up to $10,000 and throughout the month donations have come in from racers, fans and members of the Huntington community.
 
“There was a time when we needed help and we know that places like United with Love and people like Erin and their volunteers are making a difference in people’s lives every day,” said Brittanie Hart. “The Race to Fill the Food Pantry is something we can do this month, but they need assistance and support every month and we want to encourage everyone to get involved if they are able.”
 
Hart and the R+L Carriers Top Fuel team will be back on track at the Arizona Nationals, April 5-7, with one qualifying run on Friday followed by two on Saturday. The team is currently sitting No. 9 in Top Fuel points and will be looking to move up higher in the Top Ten at Firebird Raceway.
 
Fans can get more information on the Arizona Natioanals at www.nhra.com and for more information on United with Love of Huntington County visit https://lovehuntington.org/.
 
Qualifying Results
Q1: 6.118 sec, 107.81 mph; Qual. 12
Q2: 5.395 sec, 109.78 mph; Qual. 14
Bonus Points: 0
 
Race Results
First Round

Billy Torrence, Kilgore, Tex., CAPCO Contractors dragster, (.094), 3.716, 335.98 mph def. Josh Hart, Ocala, Fla., R+L Carriers dragster, (.043), 3.903, 274.61 mph
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Honda’s Alex Palou Victorious in INDYCAR $1 Million Challenge at The Thermal Club

March 24, 2024 — THERMAL, CA

  • Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou wins the $1 Million Challenge in dominant fashion
  • Heat Race 1 winner Felix Rosenqvist finishes third
  • Honda powers five of top-six finishers

Reigning and two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Alex Palou once again took Honda to the top step of the podium in the $1 Million Challenge at The Thermal Club.

Palou controlled the event from lights-to-flag, taking pole for his Heat Race, leading every lap of the second of two heat races as well as every lap of the main event ‘All Star’ race; crossing the finish line with a 5.7929-second margin of victory.

Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist finished third in his #60 Honda after also starting on pole and taking control of Heat Race 1 to make it to the final.

Honda powered five of the top six finishers on the day, including Colton Herta who drove through the field in the second half of the race after making a concerted effort to save his tires in the first ten laps.  Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Marcus Armstrong and Linus Lundqvist finished fifth and sixth respectively in their Honda-powered machines. 

The Thermal $1 Million Challenge Honda Race Results

$1 Million Challenge Final

1st Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
3rd Felix RosenqvistMeyer Shank Racing Honda
4th Colton HertaAndretti Global Honda
5th Marcus ArmstrongChip Ganassi Racing Honda
6th Linus Lundqvist-RChip Ganassi Racing Honda
9th Christian LundgaardRahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
11th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
12th Pietro Fittipaldi Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda

Heat 1:

7th Nolan Siegel-RDale Coyne Racing Honda
10th Kyle KirkwoodAndretti Global Honda   
12th Scott DixonChip Ganassi Racing Honda

Heat 2

8th Tom Blomqvist-R  Meyer Shank Racing Honda
11th Kyffin Simpson-RChip Ganassi Racing Honda   
12th Marcus EricssonAndretti Global Honda
13th Colin Braun-RDale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes
Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished 1st: “What an amazing weekend. Right from the start, we had all the speed we needed from our Honda engine and Chip Ganassi Racing car. The race format was obviously different to our regular championship, so we weren’t sure how [the strategy of] saving tires was going to play out in the final, But with no restarts at the end, everything was amazing!”

Felix Rosenqvist (#60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) finished 3rd: “A good day here at Thermal, and we leave with some cash in our pockets. That’s good for Meyer Shank Racing, and it’s great to have two Honda boys on the podium here today, and all the Hondas at the front this weekend. Alex [Palou] was kind of untouchable, so I think we finished where we could, to be honest. We weren’t the best on tires, so we kind of had to manage them a bit. But all in all, it’s been a really good start to the season for us.”

Colton Herta (#26 Andretti Global Honda) finished 4th: “Starting deep in the field like we did, we knew the race was going to be a battle, but saving tires for the first half of the final, like we did, seemed to work well for us. And to finish fourth in just a short race was pretty decent. It was a really fair fight with Marcus [Armstrong] for fourth. I felt like we gave each other plenty of racing room.”

David Salters (President, HRC US) on today’s win by Alex Palou and Honda in the non-championship Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge: “It was a good showing for Honda here at Thermal! Five of the top six finishers, so job well done team. Stunning job from Alex [Palou], he really controlled the entire event. And congrats to all of our teams for a strong showing throughout the weekend. On to the next one—a home race for us at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Let’s keep pushing!”

Next
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES next returns to Southern California for one of the signature events on the 2024 calendar, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, on Sunday, April 21.

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chevy racing–indycar–thermal $1 Million Challenge

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES THERMAL $1 MILLION CHALLENGE THERMAL, CALIFORNIA TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT MARCH 24, 2024 CHEVROLET CAPTURES PODIUM FINISH WITH SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN AND TEAM PENSKE AT THE TRICKY THERMAL CLUB $1 MILLION CHALLENGE Earning Chevrolet a podium finish for the exhibition, non-points event, Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet team finished second in the $1 Million Challenge at The Thermal Club in Thermal, Calif.With an exciting 20-lap, two-segment All-Star main event, the Bowtie brand was represented by four drivers and teams, with McLaughlin, Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden, Alexander Rossi of Arrow McLaren, and Agustin Canapino from Juncos Hollinger Racing.Heat 2 saw Rossi transfer to the main event to additionally represent Team Chevy in the main race.  Heat 1 saw Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin, along with Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Agustin Canapino, transfer to the main event.
THERMAL, Calif. (March 24, 2024) – Proving tricky for Team Chevy, The Thermal Club near Palm Spring, Calif. provided quite the challenge for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ $1 Million Challenge exhibition, a non-points-paying All-Star event. Representing Chevrolet in the 20-lap, two-segment feature race, Scott McLaughlin, driver of the No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet, finished second and led the four Bowtie-branded drivers that also included Alexander Rossi, driver of the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet (seventh), McLaughlin’s teammate Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet (eighth), and Agustin Canapino, driver of the No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet (10th). Providing additional challenges for both qualifying Saturday and race day Sunday, the southern California desert dished up substantial wind and dust, forcing drivers to weather the event and showcase their race craft in adverse conditions. “I better put some money up at the bar tonight,” McLaughlin joked. “Our XPEL Chevy. Just didn’t have quite enough for Alex (Palou). Congrats to him and his team. Once you get that clear air, it was good. I thought maybe that first restart would be okay, just to have a bit of a play around and see if we can get him, but ultimately just settled for my pace to make sure we come home in a good spot. I was pumped with my first restart. My first restart was a lot of fun. I got from fourth to second, and that really set up our race.” In Heat 1 which started Sunday morning, McLaughlin helped lead the field to the green flag on the front row in second. With a chaotic first lap that saw an on-track incident involving Rinus VeeKay, driver of the No. 21 askROI Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, and Romain Grosjean, driver of the No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, the race eventually restarted for 10 laps and drivers settled in. Transferring to the main event from Heat 1 and representing Chevrolet in the 12-lap shootout were McLaughlin, Newgarden, and Canapino.  In an action-packed second heat that saw drivers getting racy on the 3.067-mile, 4.82-kilometer country-club-like course, Rossi was the only driver to transfer after 10 laps to represent Chevrolet in the 20-lap All-Star feature race. With a main event that featured two ten-lap segments with a break between, strategy in the unique event was critically in play, where teams could only refuel and make wicker and wing adjustments to their Indy cars, with no new tires or additional adjustments allowed. With ten laps remaining after the mid-race break, McLaughlin maintained his second-place position and restarted the event near the front, with Newgarden following in fifth, Rossi in eighth, and Canapino in ninth. Before the first lap of the second segment was complete, Rossi and Newgarden gave the crowd a show with an impressive on-track battle, with Rossi moving Newgarden to try and advance. After the 20-lap event, McLaughlin crossed the finish line to claim a podium finish in second for Chevrolet and Team Penske. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES next head to Long Beach, Calif. for the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 19-21, 2024, the long-standing 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit on the streets of Long Beach, Calif. Practice kicks off the weekend Friday, with a second practice and qualifying on Saturday. Sunday’s race airs live on USA Network at 3 p.m. ET. All practice and qualifying sessions will broadcast with Peacock, and on both INDYCAR Radio and SiriusXM Channel 160.
TEAM CHEVY MAIN EVENT RACE RESULTS:2nd    Scott McLaughlin7th     Alexander Rossi8th     Josef Newgarden10th   Agustin CanapinoWHAT THEY’RE SAYING (Quotes):Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet:“Just really hard racing there with me and Alex (Rossi) and kind of a microcosm of the two strategies you saw today. We didn’t quite go into the heavy tire conservation mode that he and others did over the first 10 laps before the break. You could tell it benefited him greatly and while the Hitachi Chevy was good today, I was just trying to hold him off. It was a great weekend here at Thermal. They rolled out the red carpet once again, and I think you saw today that this track could put on an entertaining show with more laps, tire degradation and pit strategies.”
Will Power, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet:“I saw the 77 T-bone someone, and I kind of went to the outside and went to the back. It was very close, very close. I was, man, I actually I was wondering where I was because of how many people that got knocked out (in the Lap 1 incident). If it’s tenths, you could make four up. I made a couple of up and caught up to the group that Colton (Herta) was holding up, but once the tires deg, the track is slippery, there’s not many places that you can make a move. I made two moves through those esses hammering through the two fast corners, and then just throwing up the inside because it’s a pretty wide entry.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“It was a challenging weekend for us. In terms of testing, we had a pretty phenomenal week. In terms of race format and results, I would call it the Bermuda Triangle of race tracks. That is what my engineer Kate Gundlach said, and I would have to agree. It’s a very temperature-sensitive track, very wind-sensitive, and we were on the wrong side of it in qualifying. That’s something that none of us could have predicted and is probably something that has never been seen before in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. We’ll learn from it, and we can apply it when we come back next year, but that’s it from us. I’m glad we’re heading to Long Beach; it’s a place that we know. All this work will be for something. I’m looking forward to getting back to our championship.” Callum Ilott, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“The start today was strong and a bit scrappy, but then I was fighting with (Tom) Blomqvist quite hard. I had some contact with him, but we just didn’t have the pace from there. Pato (O’Ward) and Alexander (Rossi) got past me, and it was just a push to the end. Good job to Alexander (Rossi) to get into the All-Star Race; his team did a solid job.” Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“That was pretty anti-climactic. It’s hard to pass around here. The car was good, and we were able to move up from 14th overall to start the day to P7 in the final race. Now we move on to Long Beach.” Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:“It was a solid two-day test for us at AJ Foyt Racing. We learned a lot. We kind of came in on the backfoot from our Barber test. Got the car sorted, and in qualifying, we kind of missed it a little bit. I kind of missed it a little bit. When we started the heat race, and honestly, we were super competitive. We should have transferred. Just got caught out on that Lap 1 incident. Hats off to the boys. Solid three days of work. Looking forward to heading to the hybrid test next week with Chevrolet.”
Sting Ray Robb, No. 41 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:“The start was crazy. For a non-points race, I did not expect that. I was thankful for the free spots even though it’s a sad day for anyone involved in that. The team did a good job this week. It was a long week for a race that I think was consequential to our championship run. We learned a lot and we’ve got some work ahead of us. I’m excited our Pray.com team got to be with us here this week, and kind of got to have a quiet race weekend, which was fun. I’m excited for the next one.” Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:“I got hit on the braking. I haven’t seen the footage, but I got hit really, really badly in the back and then the car spun. It’s… It’s… Who’s going to pay for the damage? We come here with no points on the line, we do nothing wrong, and the car is completely smashed. What is that? It’s not what I signed in INDYCAR for.”
Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:“It was a good finish in P10. Really, really happy with the progress with this weekend. Honestly, we are improving a lot and we are still in the battle, the top-10. It was our first top-10 in INDYCAR. I am really happy, of course. Unfortunately, from the main race, our car has a big vibration for some reason. I’m not sure what happened there. But anyway, we finished in the battle in the top-10. Thanks to the whole team, and we’ll focus on Long Beach.”
SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, NO. 3 XPEL TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET– Podium Press Conference Transcript from The Thermal Club:THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge here. We are joined by Scott McLaughlin for Team Penske. $350,000 richer. We were discussing how you were going to spend all that.
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Pay off my mortgage.
THE MODERATOR: Tell us about the day.
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Look, it all started I think with my heat race. I think I had a really good start. I was lucky not to get caught up with the kerfuffle with Grosjean, him going backwards. I could see it in my mirror. Me and Felix both went wide. Interesting to get his thoughts on it. I saw him. I’m sure he did. This is not going to be good. Obviously hit Rinus behind us. I got away with that.
Settled into a rhythm. Felt like we had a good speed in the heat race. In the final race, we were pretty conserving, looking after our tires at the start, being smart, knowing there’s guys that were going crazily slow, almost too slow I feel like, from a racing perspective. Anyway, looking after their tires.
Yeah, the start of race two, I tried to have a go at Alex, but ultimately he was just a little bit faster with that clean air. It was always going to be clean air was going to be king this weekend. I settled in, tried to maximize what I had. That was second today.
Proud. It was a solid week. Testing was great. I played a lot of golf. I’ve gone away 350 grand richer. A great week. I’m happy.
THE MODERATOR: Take us through the lap 11 restart.
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I had a really good run actually. I sort of felt that’s where Alex was going to go. Felix actually went at that same point the run before. I sort of preempted it, hoping he would go to the same spot. That’s exactly where I would go at the start of the restart as well.
Got a decent start but couldn’t get close enough to make a move. It is what it is. But I was proud of the day. Thought we maximized what he we could. We’re happy.
THE MODERATOR: What did you see in your rearview mirror in the first heat?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I was talking about I saw Grosjean smoking going backwards in my mirror. I felt like me and you both went wide. That could have been just me.
Q. This was a race, but also it was supposed to be for The Thermal Club people. You guys had members embedded with you. What do you think they got out of it?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I think from our standpoint, Team Penske, we had two lovely people. Gigi, she’s a ball of fun. She was on her stand the whole time. Her and her husband. It was an amazing week to have them there. They were there from when we started testing. They had headsets on. They could hear everything we were saying. Hopefully they’re not engineers because they have a lot of our secrets. Everything was open.
I guess it’s an idea of inner sanctum to INDYCAR racing, something I think was a really good idea and good to have people part of it. Thankfully we had two good people.
Q. Obviously applaud INDYCAR for trying something new. What would you think needs to be tweaked with maybe some of the format or the issues? The first half of the final was a follow the leader, conserve tires, wasn’t quite as entertaining as people were hoping.SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, I think this is a good opportunity to try, like, completely different things. I think the qualifying was cool with the push to pass. I think that’s awesome from a standpoint of you have to nail the lap on that lap. I’m used to that from Supercars back in the day, shootouts. You had one lap and get it done. I think that’s a really good opportunity – good and bad – for you to mix up the grid. You just have to nail it. This field is so tight that if you miss it by a 10th or two, could find yourself at 15th if it was a proper shootout.
I think it’s definitely something we could think about for the Fast Six, qualifying format, not just here. I feel like we’ve done the same format for a long, long time. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great. But could we add something different to what we’ve done in the past to spice up the action.
Everyone is going to be on used for the most part in the Fast Six. Send them out, give them a little bit of push to pass, see what happens. I think that would be pretty cool.
Q. From the beginning when there was a media preview here in the fall of 2013, this track with lots of runoff, so on, was derided a little bit by the motorsports press as a gentleman’s track, subsequently as a paper clip track, not a real racetrack. We’re wondering what you have to say about that?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I think from when we were here last time to now, they’ve done a really good job with improvements, safety improvements, whatnot, to get it up to standard.
From the get-go, I think I’ll speak for myself, not for these guys, I generally have enjoyed the track. It’s a challenging technical track. It takes a lot to get the lap right. When you do, it’s very rewarding. Love the area like eight, nine long, sweeping corners. It’s a big commitment in these cars.
Yesterday you saw two people shunted there from pushing the limit too hard. You want that on the track. You want some technical spots.
It’s got a little bit of everything. It’s definitely not a gentleman’s track. I think people are jealous of not having a track in their own backyard, I guess.
Q. If we’re going to continue to have non-points exhibitions, should it rotate or this be the sole place we keep it?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I mean, I think it all comes down to the support that we get from the club and other tracks. I think Thermal have just put their backs behind INDYCAR for this and created an awesome event, the opportunity for all teams to come out here and earn money, which is an absolute bonus, but also to put on a show, have a test day for two days.
I think it’s just ultimately up to other people that want to be a part of it. But you got to give props to Thermal to do that. I don’t think you’ll see anything else unless people put up the investment that Thermal have done for us.
Q. There’s so many different things that made this event different: limited spectators, food trucks. What would you say your favorite thing was?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Having an ice cream after the race.
Q. Have you had it already?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah. Me, Alex, Felix, we all had one.
Q. Scott, that ice cream is not good for your diet.SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: That’s all right. It’s a cheat day.
Q. With clean air being king on this course, was it a little bit of a helpless feeling when you were seeing Alex just disappear into the distance?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Look, for me, echoing what Felix just said before, it was big picture. I mean, I knew that I’d have a chance. The first 10 laps was about trying to get some position, which I did, to get to the second, maybe set myself up for a pass after the restart. Alex is a pretty smart driver, as we know. I knew he’d be doing exactly what I was doing.
I just sort of tried to have a little crack on the first lap. Didn’t quite get it. Then it was settling in, making sure I pulled away from Felix. Ultimately I didn’t have enough pace for Alex either.
It is what it is. We’ll keep working. Alex has been fast all week and they deserve the win.
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CONQUERING KENNEDALE: Carson Macedo Holds Off Gravel to Top World of Outlaws Kennedale Debut

The Lemoore, CA native brings Jason Johnson Racing their 60th World of Outlaws win (Trent Gower Photo)KENNEDALE, TX (March 23, 2024) – There’s no denying 2024 didn’t begin the way Carson Macedo and Jason Johnson Racing had hoped it would.The championship caliber crew stumbled out of the gate with four straight finishes of 12th or worse. But on Saturday night at Kennedale Speedway Park, the pairing put the exclamation mark on a recent stretch that’s made them forget all about the subpar start.The driver of the Albaugh #41 started on the pole of the Series debut at Kennedale, stayed out front, and held off a charging David Gravel on the final lap for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car win. With finishes of third, second, eighth, and first in the last four races, the rough beginning to the season feels long gone.“What a great job by this JJR race team,” Macedo said. “Philip Dietz just did an incredible job, communicated well and made really good adjustments all night. I feel like my car was exceptional, laying down a good lap (in Qualifying) and just kind of took it from there. Adam Zimmerman and Robby McQuinn, they worked extremely hard and did a great job. We’re all gelling together, and the JJR team is coming together really nice.”The victory marked Macedo’s 36th with The Greatest Show on Dirt. Kennedale became the 24th different track where Macedo has visited Victory Lane and third in the state of Texas. He’s also now topped the two most recent Series debuts at a new track after claiming the inaugural Ogilvie Raceway visit last June. Jason Johnson Racing is now up to 60 total World of Outlaws wins with Macedo supplying half of them.Macedo also continued the streak of different winners to begin the year and tied the record. We’re up to eight different names to claim checkered flags to start the season, matching the mark established in 2015.The 35-lap race was brought to green by Macedo with Bill Balog to his outside. Macedo roared ahead when the green lights flashed and led the first lap.As the field navigated the opening circuits, Balog kept Macedo within striking distance with traffic ahead. The “North Pole Nightmare” closed in as lapped cars began to be a factor. Disaster nearly struck Macedo on the eighth lap when the lapped car of Jason Martin slowed ahead of him on the back straightaway. Macedo clipped Martin’s right rear tire, but not only did he save the car, he managed to hold the lead.A lap after Macedo’s close call Sheldon Haudenschild muscled by Balog for the second spot and put Macedo in the crosshairs. Macedo managed to pad his advantage by slicing through a few slower cars. But at the halfway point of the main event Haudenschild began to close back in. Right when it looked like a battle for the lead was shaping up, heartbreak hit Haudenschild as a mechanical failure caused him to slow on the front straightaway and ended his night.Haudenschild’s misfortune handed the runner-up spot to Aaron Reutzel for the ensuing restart. Macedo pulled ahead once again when the green flag resumed the action.The Lemoore, CA driver looked to be cruising toward a comfortable victory as the race dipped inside 10 laps remaining. But traffic again became a factor and set up an exciting finish. Lapped cars slowed Macedo allowing both Reutzel and David Gravel to reel him in. Reutzel began to make the top of the racetrack work. Macedo stuck with the bottom, which hadn’t failed him to that point, but Reutzel chipped away at the lead. The cushion was becoming the preferred line.The margin between Macedo and Reutzel was a mere tenth of a second when the white flag flew. But David Gravel had other plans about who might steal the win. A lapped car held Reutzel up on the final lap in Turns 1 and 2. Gravel shoved his nose to Reutzel’s inside and secured the spot heading down the back straightaway.In the final set of corners Gravel ripped the cushion with no fear but it was too little, too late as Macedo held on and crossed the finish line with only a couple car lengths between himself and the Huset’s Speedway #2.“I was getting nervous,” Macedo admitted. “I just kept telling myself, ‘Be patient. Don’t get excited.’ The bottom was really good. When I hit it right, it was excellent, but it was really easy to miss especially off of (Turn) 4. I think that’s what kind of started happening there with Bill (Rose). I’d get behind him there into (Turn) 3 and just lose my nose just enough and kind of skate out and didn’t have quite enough squirt to get by him. I could see David on the big screen. I could see Aaron kind of pacing him. I was just watching it every lap hoping I could squeak by Bill and was thankful when I finally did. I looked over and saw I had a decent amount of space.”Gravel’s runner-up finish marked his third podium of the season and first since winning night two of DIRTcar Nationals in February. The result coupled with Giovanni Scelzi’s 10th place run put Gravel back into a tie for the points lead. The Watertown, CT native felt that one extra lap might’ve led him to Victory Lane.“The car came alive the last 10 (laps), and I was really able to drive the car once we got that fuel burnt off,” Gravel said. “I lost a couple spots on those early starts. I didn’t want that to happen, but I knew (Turns) 3 and 4 were getting slick and technical. I figured the guys in front of me I could probably pick off there towards the end. I was probably going to run third there, and then Aaron got stuck behind a lapped car. The top was coming in in (Turns) 3 and 4, and Carson had no idea. It just sucks it’s not a 36-lap race.”Reutzel completed the podium in the Ridge & Sons Racing #87. The Clute, TX native was definitely hungry for a home state World of Outlaws win, but overall he came away satisfied with the speed he and the team displayed.“We had a shot. We had a phenomenal car that came in really good at the end there when I found the top and Carson didn’t know it was there yet,” Reutzel said. “It feels good to be in contention to win. It’s just a huge team effort.”Bill Balog and Brent Marks completed the top five.Sam Hafertepe Jr. grabbed the KSE Racing Hard Charger with a 24th to 11th run.Carson Macedo grabbed Simpson Quick Time honors.NOS Energy Drink Heats One, Three, and Four belonged to Bill Rose, Carson Macedo, and Ryan Timms. Milton Hershey Heat Two went to Brent Marks.Koty Adams won the Micro-Lite Last Chance Showdown.UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars make their debut at Thunderbird Speedway (Muskogee, OK) on Friday, March 29 before a stop at 81 Speedway (Wichita, KS) on Saturday, March 30. For tickets, CLICK HERE.If you can’t make it to the track, catch every lap live on DIRTVision.FEATURE RESULTS:NOS Energy Drink Feature (35 Laps): 1. 41-Carson Macedo[1]; 2. 2-David Gravel[4]; 3. 87-Aaron Reutzel[5]; 4. 17B-Bill Balog[2]; 5. 19-Brent Marks[6]; 6. 5T-Ryan Timms[7]; 7. 1S-Logan Schuchart[14]; 8. 83-Michael Kofoid[18]; 9. 15-Donny Schatz[9]; 10. 18-Giovanni Scelzi[20]; 11. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[24]; 12. 41S-Dominic Scelzi[23]; 13. 73-Scotty Thiel[11]; 14. 1-Brenham Crouch[16]; 15. 6-Bill Rose[8]; 16. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss[15]; 17. 70-Kraig Kinser[13]; 18. 7S-Landon Crawley[22]; 19. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[3]; 20. 45X-Jace Park[12]; 21. 88-Austin McCarl[10]; 22. 36-Jason Martin[17]; 23. 6A-Koty Adams[21]; 24. 2B-Brett Becker[19]
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Devin Moran Earns First Career Brownstown Victory

BROWNSTOWN, IN (March 23, 2024) – After 10 years of trying to make it to Brownstown Speedway Victory Lane, Devin Moran was finally able to breakthrough – winning the 27th Annual Indiana Icebreaker on Saturday night at the Jackson County Fairgrounds quarter-mile oval. With the win, Moran becomes the tenth different winner in the last 10 series races. The fans saw six lead changes among three drivers during the 50-lap race. Bobby Pierce, who led the most laps, with 19, finished second followed by Mike Marlar, Max Blair, and Ricky Thornton Jr. Brandon Sheppard took the lead at the start of the race as the Illini driver was looking for his third straight win in the event. Sheppard led the first 14 laps until Moran, who started from the pole, seized the top spot. His lead lasted just one lap before Pierce, who started fifth, took his first lead of the race. But like Moran, Pierce’s turn as the race leader lasted one lap and Sheppard moved back to the point. Sheppard led the next four circuits until Moran regained the lead with 21 laps complete. A back-and-forth battle ensued between Moran and Pierce as Pierce claimed the top spot for the second time in the race on lap 23.  Pierce appeared to seize control of the race through heavy traffic as he was trying to extend his lead, but Moran and Marlar were quickly closing ground on the former Jackson 100 winner. Moran was able to grab the lead from Pierce right before the final caution flag of the race flew with 13 laps to go. Moran led the final 13 circuits, but Pierce tried several different lines to retake the lead in the closing stages. However, Moran held on for his first ever win at Brownstown by just 0.532 seconds over Pierce. In Lucas Oil Victory Lane, for the first time in 2024, Moran breathed a sigh of relief for finally getting the monkey off his back at Brownstown. “It’s about time man. I love coming to this place, Jim Price [Brownstown promoter] does a great job with the track. It’s a great track, it has awesome fans, you have awesome support in the pits. I have been waiting for about 10 years to come do this. I have always run good here. I know it’s cold out here, but I was sweating bullets out there. When I moved to the top, I could make hay in three and four. After that last caution I was just trying hang on to the end.” Pierce, who won twice last year at Brownstown, came close to going back to Victory Lane. “That was an awesome race tonight. I didn’t really expect the track to be that good. I didn’t expect him [Moran] to roll the top like he did. It was a fun race and we’re glad to finish second tonight.”  Marlar, who captured the C.J. Rayburn Memorial race last September was one of the fastest cars on the track during the mid-part of the race. “Me and Devin were on harder tires than Sheppy and Bobby and I was like we just need to race here without any cautions. The track was unbelievable again; it’s always awesome here. It was a fun night.” The winner’s Roger Sellers-owned, Double Down Motorsports, Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by Lazydays RV, Big River Steel, C&W Trucking, Bilstein Shocks, McHugh Chrysler Dodge, Jeep, and Ram, CarSource, Haulin Haskell’s, Red Oak Pub, and Smoky Mountain Speedway. Completing the top ten were Hudson O’Neal, Brandon Sheppard, Josh Rice, Nick Hoffman, and Daulton Wilson. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary 27th Annual Indiana IcebreakerSaturday, March 23, 2024Brownstown Speedway – Brownstown, IN
Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Michael Chilton | 13.315 seconds (overall)Fast Time Group B: Brandon Sheppard | 13.478 seconds
Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 99-Devin Moran[3]; 2. 32P-Bobby Pierce[2]; 3. 97C-Michael Chilton[1]; 4. 58-Garrett Alberson[4]; 5. 99B-Boom Briggs[8]; 6. 17SS-Brenden Smith[5]; 7. 1G-Devin Gilpin[6]; 8. 24-Jared Bailey[9]; 9. 4-Cody Mahoney[10]; 10. 75-Daniel Adam[7]; 11. 81J-Jack Riggs[11]; 12. 43-Derrick Stewart[12]
Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Tim McCreadie[2]; 2. 93F-Carson Ferguson[4]; 3. 1T-Tyler Erb[3]; 4. 3S-Brian Shirley[5]; 5. 76-Shelby Miles[6]; 6. 6-Clay Harris[12]; 7. 4T-Tripp Gerrald[1]; 8. 23-Cory Hedgecock[8]; 9. 12-Jason Jameson[9]; 10. 4G-Bob Gardner[10]; 11. 19M-Spencer Hughes[7]; 12. 25W-Allen Weisser[11]
Earnhardt Technologies Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. B5-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[7]; 3. 9-Nick Hoffman[2]; 4. 111-Max Blair[3]; 5. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[4]; 6. 68-Adam Stricker[5]; 7. 8-Dillon McCowan[8]; 8. 97-Cody Overton[10]; 9. 25-Tony Jackson Jr[6]; 10. 32-Chad Stapleton[11]; 11. 93-Cory Lawler[9]; 12. 29J-Jordan Wever[12]
Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[3]; 2. 18D-Daulton Wilson[1]; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport[2]; 4. 71-Hudson O’Neal[7]; 5. 20-Jimmy Owens[4]; 6. 11R-Josh Rice[9]; 7. 96-Tanner English[8]; 8. 93K-Kent Robinson[6]; 9. 7T-Drake Troutman[5]; 10. 7-Ross Robinson[10]; 11. S21-Seth Daniels[12]; 12. 11-Tyler Collins[11]
Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 1G-Devin Gilpin[5]; 2. 99B-Boom Briggs[1]; 3. 12-Jason Jameson[10]; 4. 25W-Allen Weisser[16]; 5. 4-Cody Mahoney[9]; 6. 4T-Tripp Gerrald[6]; 7. 17SS-Brenden Smith[3]; 8. 19M-Spencer Hughes[14]; 9. 75-Daniel Adam[11]; 10. 43-Derrick Stewart[15]; 11. 24-Jared Bailey[7]; 12. 6-Clay Harris[4]; 13. 81J-Jack Riggs[13]; 14. 76-Shelby Miles[2]; 15. 23-Cory Hedgecock[8]; 16. (DNS) 4G-Bob Gardner
UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 11R-Josh Rice[4]; 2. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[1]; 3. 96-Tanner English[6]; 4. 20-Jimmy Owens[2]; 5. 68-Adam Stricker[3]; 6. 97-Cody Overton[7]; 7. 25-Tony Jackson Jr[9]; 8. 93K-Kent Robinson[8]; 9. 32-Chad Stapleton[11]; 10. 11-Tyler Collins[16]; 11. 29J-Jordan Wever[15]; 12. 8-Dillon McCowan[5]; 13. 7-Ross Robinson[12]; 14. S21-Seth Daniels[14]; 15. 7T-Drake Troutman[10]; 16. (DNS) 93-Cory Lawler
Indiana Icebreaker Feature Finish (50 Laps):
Race Statistics  Entrants: 48Victory Fuel Pole Sitter: Devin MoranLap Leaders: Brandon Sheppard (Laps 1-14); Devin Moran (Lap 15); Bobby Pierce (Laps 16-20); Devin Moran (Laps 21-22); Bobby Pierce (Laps 23-36); Devin Moran (Laps 37-50)Wieland Feature Winner: Devin MoranArizona Sport Shirts Crown Jewel Cup Feature Winner: n/aBrandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: n/aMargin of Victory: 0.532 seconds Dave Warren Powersports Cautions: Jason Jameson (Lap 2); Tony Jackson, Jr. (Lap 37)Series Provisionals: Drake Troutman; Ross RobinsonFast Time Provisional: n/aSeries Emergency Provisionals: Tony Jackson, Jr.; Brenden Smith; Daniel Adam; Cory LawlerTrack Provisional: Shelby MilesBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Devin Moran, Bobby Pierce, Mike MarlarPenske Shocks Top 5: Devin Moran, Bobby Pierce, Mike Marlar, Max Blair, Ricky Thornton, Jr.Todd Steel Buildings Hard Charger of the Race: Max Blair (Advanced 10 Positions) Wilwood Brakes Lucky 7th Place Feature: Brandon SheppardDeatherage Opticians Lucky 13th Place Feature: Tanner EnglishMD3 Most Laps Led: Bobby Pierce (19 Laps) Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Ricky Thornton, Jr.O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: n/a Coltman Farms Fastest Lap of the Race: Brandon Sheppard (Lap 1 – 14.620 seconds) Slicker Graphics Slickest Move of the Race: Devin MoranMiller Welders Hard Luck Award: Clay HarrisOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Chuck Kimble (Devin Moran)ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Racing EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Brandon Sheppard (13.180 seconds)Time of Race: 18 minutes 33 seconds 
Big River Steel Chase for the Championship Presented by ARP Point Standings:
 
About Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt SeriesFounded in 2005, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series showcases the talents of the top dirt late model drivers from across the country. In 2024, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will sanction 63 events across 16 states, including some of the biggest marquee events in the industry, providing dirt slinging, sideways, door-to-door racing action lap after lap.  The series receives national exposure through a television package streamed live via FloRacing, with select broadcasts on MAVTV Motorsports Network.   The in your face excitement of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is second to none in motorsports. For more information, including the latest news, tour schedule, driver information, and more, visit the official website at: www.LucasDirt.com.
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BRITTANY FORCE ROARS TO NO. 1 QUALIFIER AT NHRA WINTERNATIONALS

Daughter of John Force aiming for her first-ever Winternationals victory
POMONA, Calif. (March 23, 2024) – Brittany Force paced John Force Racing in Saturday’s final qualifying effort for Sunday’s Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
Force captured the No. 1 qualifier position in Top Fuel with an elapsed time of 3.711 seconds at 335.73 mph. The day was originally scheduled to have two rounds of qualifying, but rain in the morning and early afternoon forced NHRA officials to cut qualifying to just one final round for all professional categories.
Piloting the Mark Christopher Auto Center Chevrolet/Monster Energy dragster, Force, a two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion (2017 and 2022), recorded her first No. 1 qualifying effort since Denver last summer and the 47th of her career. This is also her fourth No. 1 qualifying run at the Winternationals.
“It was a killer run for our team, I’m real proud of them,” Force said. “It’s tough when you sit out and wait for the rain all day. We were hoping to get that run in. Thank you to the fans for hanging out with us all day. We’re hoping to show you some more good racing (in Sunday’s final eliminations).
“We’ve had a lot of number one qualifiers, but again, our focus is race day. That’s where the points really add up. That’s what matters at the end of this thing when we return here at the end of the season to try to chase down a championship. So, yes, we love those number ones. Great way to kick off the season.”
While she has a prior win in the season-ending World Finals at Pomona, Force has never won the Winternationals at her home track. Her father, team patriarch John Force, is a seven-time Winternationals winner in Funny Car.
“We’re definitely ready for tomorrow,” Brittany Force said. “We wanted three (qualifying rounds), but two is good enough. And they were two consistent runs, which is what we’ve been focusing on coming into this season.
“We need consistent runs that go down the racetrack. We’re not trying to do these crazy runs that light the board on fire. Let’s get down there, let’s get us in the show, and let’s go rounds on race day. So far, we’re in a good place, and we’re anxious to see what we can do tomorrow.”
*******************
Brittany’s father, John Force, was able to bounce back from Friday’s disappointing single qualifying run, which was disallowed because his PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car crossed the center line.
Force worried that the weather might not cooperate on Saturday and he may not have qualified, which means he would have missed Sunday’s final eliminations. But Force’s fears were for naught as the weather broke and he was able to qualify No. 6 with a run of 3.996 seconds at 318.99 mph.
“All in all, you’ve really got to do your job, that’s really what it’s all about,” Force said after he was assured of a strong starting spot. “What’s amazing is how sick you can be all night (worrying about whether he’d get one more qualifying run) when you’ve done this for 100 years. Hey, we’re in the show at Pomona!”
*******************Force’s fellow Funny Car driving teammate, Austin Prock, had a rough effort Saturday. He struggled to maintain control of the Automobile Club of Southern California/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS, ending up with a time of 4.758 seconds at 229.31 mph.
“That was definitely the most embarrassing run I’ve ever made, Prock said. “It was definitely frustrating … but tomorrow is when it counts.
“We got a little bit of money from the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge (a special race-within-a-race exhibition event), but it’s just frustrating on my end. I could have done a lot better job. I don’t have many runs in these cars and every run is a new learning experience. We’ll go through everything tonight and I know these guys will give me a bad fast car tomorrow and I’m going to drive the hell out of it.”
Prock dropped from ninth-quickest on Friday to 15th on Saturday. He will face No. 2 qualifier Ron Capps in Sunday’s first round of eliminations.
*******************
Even though it occurred Thursday evening, John Force was still talking Saturday about the emotional celebration of life event honoring the late drag racer and team owner Roland Leong.
“The celebration of life has a lot of meaning,” Force said. “I always knew Roland Leong was loved by a lot of people, but I didn’t realize how many until I saw the crowd there. There were so many funny stories and how people felt about losing him.
“Seeing the emotion from Don Prudhomme, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him cry and never saw him that emotional. The man must have been a true friend to him. And then (Leong’s) two daughters talked about him, things I never knew about him. He’s a great individual and he’s watching over us all now, but he got a great going away party. It was great.”
*******************
Weather permitting, final eliminations for the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals will start Sunday at 10 a.m. PT. FS1 will televise a qualifying recap on Sunday from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET. The Finals will also air on FS1 from 7 to 10 p.m. ET.
#2024ORCE 
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Honda’s Palou and Rosevqvist Claim Heat Race Poles for Thermal $1 Million Challenge

March 24, 2024 — THERMAL, CA

  • Felix Rosenqvist scores pole for the first Heat Race in the made for TV event
  • Led by Alex Palou, Honda locks out first three rows for second $1 Million Challenge Heat Race at The Thermal Club
  • Christian Lundgaard qualifies P4 in Heat 1 after pacing practice at Thermal

Alex Palou led a top-six Honda sweep of IndyCar qualifying today for the second of two Heat Races at The Thermal Club as part of this weekend’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES $1 Million Challenge.

Reigning series champion Palou and his Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Marcus Armstrong locked out the front row, while fellow Honda drivers Graham Rahal, Linus Lundqvist, Tom Blomqvist and Pietro Fittipaldi filled out an all-Honda top six for the second heat race of the event. 

Felix Rosenqvist made it two Hondas on pole for Sunday’s heat races, scoring pole for Heat Race 1 in the made for TV event. Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard led the field in the four practice sessions held on Friday and Saturday, before qualifying fourth for Heat 1 aboard his #45 Hy-Vee Honda. 

The two heat races tomorrow will determine the 12 drivers who will advance to the final “All Star” race—six from each heat. Heat 2 results will form the ‘odd’ positions on the grid—by virtue of Palou setting the fastest lap in today’s qualifying sessions—while Heat 1 race results will comprise the ‘even’ grid positions. 

The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge Honda Qualifying Results

Heat 1:

1st Felix Rosenqvist  Meyer Shank Racing Honda
4th Christian LundgaardRahal Letterman Lanigan Honda   
9th Scott DixonChip Ganassi Racing Honda
11th Colton HertaAndretti Global Honda
12th Nolan Siegel-RDale Coyne Racing Honda
13th Kyle Kirkwood    Andretti Global Honda

Heat 2

 1st Alex PalouChip Ganassi Racing Honda
2nd Marcus ArmstrongChip Ganassi Racing Honda
3rd Graham RahalRahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
4th Linus Lundqvist-RChip Ganassi Racing Honda
5th Tom Blomqvist-RMeyer Shank Racing Honda
6th Pietro Fittipaldi     Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
10th Kyffin Simpson-RChip Ganassi Racing Honda
12th Colin Braun-R   Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
13th Marcus EricssonAndretti Global Honda

R – Rookie

Format for the $1 Million Challenge

  • Two heat races, the first starting at 12:30 p.m. ET Sunday, will determine the field for The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge. Each heat race will consist of 10 laps or be timed at 20 minutes. Laps under full course yellow will not count; however, the race clock will continue.
  • The top six advancing cars from each heat race will make up the 12-car field for The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge. The final will consist of 20 laps divided into two 10-lap sprint segments with a 10-minute “halftime” break following the completion of Lap 10.
  • In addition to the winner’s $500,000 purse, the $1 Million Challenge will pay out $350,000 for second; $250,000 for third; $100,000 for fourth and $50,000 for fifth. Sixth through 27th will receive $23,000 each for their efforts.

Quotes
Felix Rosenqvist (#60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) pole qualifier for Sunday’s Heat Race 1: “We tried to stay calm after a pretty messy practice session for us. It was just like ‘forget that session, take a deep breath, and do it all again’. It’s just so freaky out there man, the wind is changing with every lap, but we were able to put a really quick one together when it counted, and that’s awesome. I think this team is just jelling together more and more with every session, and that’s huge for us for sure.”
 
Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) pole qualifier for Sunday’s Heat Race 2: “That was great, looking forward to tomorrow. That’s the best starting position and I’m happy that after all that confusion with the Red Flag [following Marcus Ericsson’s crash] that we were still able to put a lap together. We only had 14 seconds [out of 40 seconds of “push to pass”] left after the Red, as we were using everything we had on the lap where it went red. So I’m pretty happy with our pace. The car is good, so we’re really looking forward to tomorrow.”

Where to Watch
Television coverage of Sunday’s $1 Million Challenge starts at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC.  Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).

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RCR NXS Race Recap: Circuit of The Americas

Solid Day for Jesse Love and the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Team at Circuit of the Americas Results in Sixth-Place Finish
6th14th4th
“It was a decent finish and a good points day for our No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet team. The big horsepower isn’t something that I’m used to, and towards the end of the race, I figured out what I needed to do in order to make speed out of the car. Even though we had to fight our way from the back to the front a couple of times, I kept my head in the game and tried to learn as much as I could. During the last stage, I put together some fast laps that kept me in the hunt. There were some issues with the last restart that didn’t go our way, but it could have been a lot worse. Overall, it was a decent day and something to build off of. I need to get to work on my road course driving style and come back stronger. I want to applaud everyone at Richard Childress Racing and ECR for bringing fast Camaros every week. This team has been close to winning this year and we will achieve that soon.” 
-Jesse Love 
Austin Hill and the No. 21 Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet Team Leave Circuit of the Americas With Strong Second-Place Finish 
2nd11th1st
“It was a frustrating end to the race, but heck of a job by everyone at Richard Childress Racing. Our Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet was so fast all day. Early in the race, I made a mistake cutting the track and we had to come back from that pass-through penalty. The last overtime restart seemed to go somewhat clean in my opinion. It seemed like the No. 97 lifted early and then he started to wheel hop once I got to the back of him in Turn 1. I was able to get by him and tried to drive as hard as I could without overdriving. I thought I was doing everything right by trying to protect in Turns 15 and 16, but ultimately, we got ran over. All in all, it was a good day for our No. 21 team. We are firing on all cylinders right now. It doesn’t matter where we go, we are running and finishing inside the top-five. We will keep our heads up.” 
-Austin Hill
       
 
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CHEVROLET QUALIFIES FOUR IN THE TOP-FIVE FOR NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ $1 MILLION CHALLENGE HEAT 1

Chevrolet saw four drivers finish in the top-five of qualifying’s Group 1, with Scott McLaughlin, driver of the XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet, leading the Bowtie brigade in second with his fastest lap of 01:38.6068 seconds.Alexander Rossi, driver of the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, led Team Chevy in Group 2 in seventh with his fastest lap of 01:39.1140 seconds after a mid-session caution shook up strategy.Ahead of Sunday’s heat races and main event, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES completed four test sessions with Callum Ilott, driver of the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, topping the charts with his fastest lap of 01:38.7784 seconds in Test Session 3.In the fourth open test Saturday afternoon, Chevrolet occupied the first two or three positions for most of the session, finishing with four teams in the top-five, and seven in the top-10.Sunday’s $1 Million Challenge from The Thermal Club airs live at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC, with additional broadcast coverage on Peacock, INDYCAR Radio, and SiriusXM Channel 160.
TEAM CHEVY GROUP 1 QUALIFYING RESULTS, HEAT RACE 1 LINEUP:2nd    Scott McLaughlin3rd     Rinus VeeKay5th     Josef Newgarden6th     Will Power7th     Romain Grosjean8th     Agustin Canapino10th   Santino Ferrucci14th   Sting Ray Robb TEAM CHEVY GROUP 2 QUALIFYING RESULTS, HEAT RACE 2 LINEUP:7th     Alexander Rossi8th     Callum Ilott9th     Pato O’Ward11th   Christian Rasmussen
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (Quotes):Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Chevrolet at Team Penske:“I feel solid in race running. It’s a tricky surface. There’s definitely going to be drop off and tire wear, but I think we’re looking after the tires super well so I’m excited for race running. Got to stay out of trouble to start, and then I think our longevity should prove to be pretty competitive. Proud of the Hitachi Chevrolet crew. It’s been fun testing here and getting through a list of items and seeing if we can win some money tomorrow.”
A pretty strong start to the season with Chevrolet, a pretty strong package…“Chevy’s done a great job. They continue to bring us great performance on the weekend. Excited to get through tomorrow, but also really excited to get back to Long Beach as well and keep proving our worth.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Chevrolet at Team Penske:“I’m hell bent. To have a qualifying session which was just bang, bang, bang in a shootout lap, one lap, is pretty awesome and that’s effectively what that was. To do a good job there was good. Congrats to Felix (Rosenqvist). I feel like I could have had him. I just marked up that last corner, but that’s… You’ve got to do the lap, it’s pressure, and that’s cool.”
You’ve got to get it right on the push-to-pass lap…“Exactly. I think that’d be really cool, but I think our XPEL Chevy was great. Obviously, Chevy has been giving us great power this year and fuel mileage so really stoked for everyone there, and hopefully we can keep this XPEL Chevy up front.”
So what do you expect for the heat race tomorrow? How do you approach that?“We’ll do what we can. Every race, we go out and try to win it. It’s a learning process too. We’ll figure out what the car does even more so over ten laps, but yeah, I’ll be doing my best to at least get ahead of Felix (Rosenqvist). It’s going to be interesting where we’ll shake up at the end of ten laps.” Will Power, No. 12 Chevrolet at Team Penske:“Because you have push-to-pass, it’s just one lap and big (degradation). It’s very difficult to wait two hours, then have a different condition and just go. It’s tough.”
Did you know what the track was going to be like?“I did. I tried a couple of different things and made mistakes. I mean, honestly, the quickest time was a quick time. It was hard to put all of that together. For (Felix) Rosenqvist to be P1 is solid.”
How do you think the heat races will play out?“It just depends on what you want to do. I don’t feel like doing much damage for P6 or something. It’s such a short race, anything can happen.”
With all of the test sessions, do you feel as a group it was worth it? You were able to try a bunch of different stuff.“I think the whole qualifying and racing made you not try stuff. You were doing these qualifying sims because you knew the only way you’ll do well in these things is qualifying up front.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren:“This track is very sensitive to heat, wind. It was getting really gusty, especially there in the back over by the esses. There was a lot of sand on track. You could see it from the rooster tails coming out of the cars. As it was for us, it wasn’t the most perfect lap for me, but I just could never get the car to set. It was always wanting to go the opposite direction of where I wanted it to go. It was a bit of a fight out there, but it seems like we’re not the only ones. A lot of guys are struggling with it, and it’s just really, really gusty and feels icy out there.”
Do you remember a weekend like this where it’s different to run all the time?“Not in INDYCAR, but in a Formula 1 test, yes. Those cars are really, really wind sensitive and I feel like we’re getting a taste of that here. Maybe in Indy, where you’re going so fast and the wind is a bit more of a factor. It’s definitely shifted a lot. You think you have a good car, and then you’re going into it and what happened to the balance? Not that if felt horrible, but it just never actually got into, I feel like, an operating window. I feel the tires never got to their sweet spot, and this qualifying session that we’ve with overtake, you’ve got one lap to do it. Once you choose your lap, you’ve got to stick with it. I’m glad that we tried in Lap 2, I think Callum (Ilott) did as well. But it seems that we’re not the only ones that are struggling.”
Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:“It’s interesting. Just like this whole weekend, right? It’s different. You’ve got the push-to-pass too, which usually you can focus on one thing, but now we’re pressing a button on the top of the steering wheel. It felt really good. One thing about this track, with the wind and basically a sandstorm that came through, every session, maybe every outing, the car felt different. We just kind of nailed it for the conditions the way they were. A little bit surprised. Didn’t feel as good as in practice, but very, very happy and great job by the guys.” What will be the biggest key tomorrow? Will it be aggressiveness? Conservative?“Staying on track. I think that’s my thing. You only have to lead one lap and that’s the last one. First got to make it through to the all-star race and then to the $1 Million Challenge, and then we look forward there. This starting position definitely makes tomorrow a little bit easier. If you’re second with $500,000 on the line, are you willing to move someone to win?“If I’m close enough and I see a gap, I’ll definitely go for it.” Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:“We knew qualifying was going to be a challenge. Very tricky conditions out there. I made a small mistake in our lap that cost us, but we are up there in the mix, so a lot of potential in the car.” Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:“We are in a good position. Honestly, the lap wasn’t good. We didn’t find the speed in the fastest corner, and we need to check what happened. But the good thing is we are in a good position for tomorrow to try and make it to the main race.” From that kind of position, you know you need to pick up a couple of spots. What is the approach in this short heat race tomorrow?“I think the target is try to end better. Of course, we are starting P8 alongside my teammate Romain (Grosjean). We need to only need to advance two positions. It will be difficult of course. Many good drivers and top teams, but we had a good car, especially in practice. We were much better. For some reason, my car wasn’t good in qualifying again on the faster corners, but I think we can find some speed for tomorrow.” What have you learned this weekend that will help you moving forward this season?“Oh, a lot. I remember this same moment, same place, last year, and I was completely lost. Completely, completely lost. I made a big improvement during my first year. I need more practice, more experience, especially with the new tires, but we are in a good situation. The team has improved a lot, especially with Romain (Grosjean). We are in a good situation. You can see that with the guys we have now behind us.”
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MARK PAWUK GRABS FLEXJET FACTORY STOCK SHOWDOWN NO. 1 AT NHRA WINTERNATIONALS


POMONA, CA (March 23, 2024) —- Mark Pawuk started the NHRA Winternationals running to the top of the qualifying order and continued to put pressure on his Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown competitors. The NHRA Gatornationals winner ran 7.856 seconds at 178.87 mph in the opening session of qualifying Friday. Pawuk’s Empaco Dodge Drag Pak that is memorializing his longtime friend and NHRA Hall of Famer Don Schumacher held off the rest of the field through the second session. After Saturday’s qualifying session was rained out Pawuk earned his fifth No. 1 qualifier and will enter Sunday looking to secure his third national event win.


 Mark Pawuk launches off starting line at NHRA Winternationals, photo credit Auto Imagery/Gary Nastase

I won the Gatornationals two weeks ago and I would love to win the Winternationals this weekend,” said Pawuk, from his pit after qualifying was cancelled. “Flexjet Factory Stock has never run in Pomona so getting the first win would be cool. We have a good hot rod but there are a lot of tough cars here this weekend. I am going to have to be on top of my game. We had a couple good runs yesterday and Mother Nature didn’t cooperate with us today. We’ll be ready for race day tomorrow.”
 
Pawuk will be racing back-to-back Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown title when eliminations get underway. Two weeks ago, Pawuk as the No. 3 qualifier raced to the winner’s circle at the NHRA Gatornationals. The two-time Factory Stock Showdown national event winner will be looking to hold onto the Flexjet Bounty throughout race day. The first driver to have a shot at taking the $1,000 prize will be Tony Scott Jr.
 
“I have a lot of pride in this Don Schumacher memorial car so I want to put on a good show tomorrow,” said Pawuk. “I want to thank all my sponsors especially Empaco, Ohio CAT and CAT Reynolds storage. I also have folks like Mr. Heater, Heat Star and Summit back on my car with Red Line Oil, Dodge and all my associates like VP Fuel, Mickey Thompson and the group at Diamond Pistons. It takes a lot to run these cars and I want to thank Flexjet for all they do for the class. Getting to run at the Winternationals is special and I am glad we wound up No. 1.”
 
Behind Pawuk in the qualifying order sits Scott Libersher, David Janac and Anthony Troyer driving Chevrolet COPO Camaros. Libersher’s 7.879 second pass was also posted in the first qualifying session. The Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown class is making its series debut at In-N-Out Burger Dragstrip at Pomona this weekend. With all three major manufacturers represented in the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown field race day will be an exciting battle between Chevrolet, Dodge and Ford.
 
First Round Match-ups
 
No. 1 Mark Pawuk vs No. 10 Tony Scott Jr.
No. 2 Scott Libersher vs. No. 9 Stephen Bell
No. 3 David Janac vs. No. 8 Ricky Hord
No. 4 Anthony Troyer vs. No. 7 David Davies
No. 5 Lee Hartman vs. No. 6 Doug Hamp
 
2024 FLEXJET NHRA FACTORY STOCK SHOWDOWN SCHEDULE
April 12-14                  24th annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, Las Vegas
May 17-19                   24th annual Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals, Chicago
June 7-9                      23rd annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Bristol, Tenn.
June 27-30                  18th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, Norwalk, Ohio
Aug. 15-18                   42nd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, Brainerd, Minn.
Aug. 28-Sept. 2           70th annual Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals, Indianapolis
Sept. 12-15                  39th annual Pep Boys NHRA Nationals, Reading, Pa.
Sept. 27-29                  13th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals, St. Louis


About Flexjet
 
If maintaining performance vehicles is your passion – translate those skills into becoming a Flexjet aircraft maintenance technician (AMT). Explore a career with the world-class Flexjet Maintenance group today.
 
Flexjet, Inc., a global leader in subscription-based private aviation, first entered the fractional jet ownership market in 1995. Flexjet offers fractional jet ownership and leasing and is the first in the world to be recognized as achieving the Air Charter Safety Foundation’s Industry Audit Standard, is the first and only company to be honored with 25 FAA Diamond Awards for Excellence, upholds an ARG/US Platinum Safety Rating, a 4AIR Bronze Sustainable Rating and is IS-BAO compliant at Level 2. Red Label by Flexjet, a market differentiator, which features the most modern fleet in the industry, flight crews dedicated to a single aircraft and the LXi Cabin Collection of interiors. To date there are nearly 50 different interior designs across its fleet, which includes the Embraer Phenom 300 and Praetor 500, Bombardier Challenger 350, the Gulfstream G450 and G650. Flexjet’s European fleet includes the Embraer Praetor 600 and the Gulfstream G650. Flexjet’s helicopter division sells fractional, lease, and on-demand charter access to its fleet of owned, operated and maintained Sikorsky S-76 helicopters which boast 55,000 hours of safe flying certified by Wyvern and ARG/US and serving locations throughout the northeastern United States, United Kingdom, and southern Florida. Flexjet is a member of the Directional Aviation family of companies. For more details on innovative programs and flexible offerings, visit www.flexjet.com or follow us on Instagram @FlexjetInc.
 

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Burton Qualifies 29th at COTA


March 23, 2024


Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang Dark Horse are set to start 29th in Sunday’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas.

Burton toured the 20-turn, 3.426-mile course at an average speed of 93.817 miles per hour in Saturday’s qualifying session. His fourth and final lap was his best of the session.

Sunday’s 68-lap, 231.88-mile race is scheduled to get the green flag just after 2:30 p.m. local time (3:30 p.m. Eastern) with Stage breaks at Laps 15 and 30.
 FOX will carry the TV coverage.

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chevy racing–nascar–circuit of the americas–pole qualifying

NASCAR CUP SERIES CIRCUIT OF THE AMERICAS ECHO PARK AUTOMOTIVE GRAND PRIXT EAM CHEVY QUALIFYING REPORT MARCH 23, 2024

 
Byron Claims Pole Position at Circuit of The AmericasFour Camaro ZL1’s Qualify in Top-10
·       William Byron drove Chevrolet to its first NASCAR Cup Series pole of the season at Circuit of The Americas – posting a best-lap of 129.636 seconds, at 94.696 mph, in his No. 24 RaptorTough.com Camaro ZL1 in the final round of qualifying. 
·       The pole marks Byron’s second NASCAR Cup Series pole at Circuit of The Americas, and his 13th career pole in 222 starts in NASCAR’s top division. 
·       Byron’s pole marked Chevrolet’s third pole win in the NASCAR Cup Series’ four races at Circuit of The Americas. 
·       The feat marked Chevrolet’s first NASCAR Cup Series pole win of the 2024 season, and the manufacturer’s 744th all-time pole win in NASCAR’s top division. 
·       Four drivers from three different Chevrolet organizations posted a top-10 qualifying effort, with Byron leading Spire Motorsports’ Corey LaJoie in fifth, Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain in sixth and Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott in ninth. 
·       FOX will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on Sunday, March 23, at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can also be found on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 STARTING LINEUP:  POS.   DRIVER1st      William Byron, No. 24 RaptorTough.com Camaro ZL15th      Corey LaJoie, No. 7 Gainbridge Camaro ZL16th      Ross Chastain, No. 1 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL19th      Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1
William Byron, No. 24 RaptorTough.comCamaro ZL1 – Pole Win Media Availability Quotes

You had the track record last year. I think there were 28 drivers in qualifying this year that broke it. You held onto it in the first round and then won the pole. Can you describe the differences between running the qualifying laps this year with the new pavement compared to last year? “Yeah, so the areas that they repaved have quite a bit more grip as we got the tire rubber kind of rubbered in and got the race track to where it was kind of peak grip level. I feel like it took probably the first five to eight laps for everyone to make for the track to keep getting faster, and probably for us to understand where the grip level is on the race track to push. I feel like we got to a spot where we understood the race track more. I think my biggest thing, or my biggest concern, is just turn eight and how the dirt is there. It’s definitely difficult to get through that corner. Wish that was a little bit better to make the race track flow a little bit nicer, but I feel like the added grip in some areas was nice and a little bit smoother. I don’t think it will really change the race any. I think the braking zones and the passing zones will be the same. It should be a pretty exciting race.”

Is there anything you feel like should change.. should they put curb in overnight in that area, or say what they’re going to do with track limits in that area? “I would like to see a curb, maybe where the grass starts there.. just maybe right there on that edge. That would probably be the best solution. I think we should do something. Like track limits.. I don’t know, it’s really tough to police through there. It’s very difficult to see that area, so I think kind of having something that can not allow us to go there and risking damage.”

Talking about track limits, in general.. how do you balance the line of pushing through the esses to maximize your laps times, while also not ending up with that penalty where you end up having to make a pass through? How do you balance where that aggression is? “Yeah, I feel like through the esses, the track limits is very appropriate because it’s easy to understand through there. Obviously, you have a lot of paint inside the curbing, but you can really kind of tell where you are on the race track there. So I feel like track limits through the esses is great. We’ve gotten used to it. The rules have been the same now for three years, I think. I think we’re doing a good job with the rules and everything to police that, and everyone has kind of stayed within the box. I didn’t ever get any laps disallowed, and hopefully don’t get any tomorrow.”

What’s been the best advice you’ve gotten from Max Papis, who’s coached you in the past when it comes to racing at the road courses?“Yeah, I mean it’s just an evolution over time. Going out to the carting track this week, and just honestly, it’s been my first normal week since the Daytona 500.. just being able to be back home; be in my rhythm and kind of my cocoon and be able to focus on driving the race car. I feel really happy with how the week has gone. I feel very fresh going into this race, so I’m excited for that.  Yeah, our preparation is kind of the same that we normally do for road courses.”

We saw a lot of guys locking-up going into turn one. Some said it was tires, some said they might have been pushing too hard. Is that something that you foresee being an issue on race day?“I don’t know. It seemed like once we understood that was the limit, it seemed like things got better there. I don’t know.. I haven’t looked at my turn one’s to see if I was giving up time, but I wasn’t locking up as I went through the rounds there. So I feel like at first, it was really prevalent because the bump there and the subsequent bumps, kind of as you get to the apex, is definitely rough. If there’s anywhere that I thought they would repave, I thought it would be there because turn one is very rough, but it creates some character. And on the restarts, it’s very tricky. We’ll see how that all plays out, for sure.”
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BRITTANY FORCE EARNS NO. 3 PROVISIONAL QUALIFYING SPOT IN NHRA WINTERNATIONALS

Austin Prock qualifies No. 9 in Funny Car, while John Force was disqualified for crossing the center line
POMONA, Calif. (March 22, 2024) – Winning the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals has long been on Brittany Force’s bucket list. After Friday’s single nitro qualifying session, the two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion on Friday appears well on her way toward hopefully achieving that goal.
Force’s Mark Christopher Auto Center Chevrolet/Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster was third quickest of the 17-car field, with an outstanding run of 3.783 seconds at 330.39 mph at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
“Coming out of a tough weekend in the season opener at Gainesville, Pomona is my home track and you want to do well there,” said Force. “We have Mark Christopher on the car and we want to make them proud and get them into the winner’s circle.
“There’s a lot of pressure and looking at the forecast (Saturday), we may have only one qualifying session heading into the finals (on Sunday). It was a solid run.”
Force recorded the best performance of the three-car John Force Racing team.
*******************
Force’s teammate, Austin Prock, is the provisional ninth-quickest in the Auto Club of Southern California/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car.Prock recorded a run of 4.758 seconds at 229.31 mph in Friday’s solo qualifying session.
“I can run a lot better than 4.75 and smoking the tires like we did,” Prock said. “The track was real tricky tonight. The thing was hooked up and then it just (lost traction). It didn’t give me any signal at all. I was feathering the throttle just to keep it off the wall. 
“But sitting ninth right now, fingers crossed, hopefully we can get better weather than what’s forecast tomorrow and hopefully get this Auto Club of Southern California Camaro into the top half.
“I know I can do a better job than what I did and if it gets rained out tomorrow, at least we’re in the field and racing on Sunday.”
The Auto Club team also earned a berth in this week’s Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge with a semi-final result in the season-opening Gatornationals two weeks ago. He will face Chad Green in the first round of the Challenge that will take place simultaneously with the second round of Winternationals qualifying on Saturday, weather permitting. 
*******************Team owner John Force had his hands full in his qualifying run, with things not turning out the way he had hoped.
The 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion and winner of 155 national events lost traction roughly 300 feet down the dragstrip and then drifted across the center line, causing an immediate disqualification.
As a result, the driver of the PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS is not among the 16 drivers who are qualified thus far. He is hoping Saturday’s weather forecast is more positive so that he can get in at least one more qualifying attempt and work his way up into the final field for Sunday’s eliminations.
*******************As Prock and Brittany Force alluded to, weather is a significant concern for Saturday. Two more rounds of nitro qualifying are scheduled at Noon PT and 2:30 p.m. PT, but Mother Nature may have other plans.
Various weather reports peg the chance rain at almost 90% throughout the entire afternoon and into the evening.
**********************************Weather permitting, FS1 will televise Qualifying Show No. 1 on Saturday, March 23, from 9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET. Qualifying Show No. 2 is Sunday, March 24, from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET. The Finals will also air on Sunday, March 24, from 7 to 10 p.m. ET.#2024ORCE 
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chevy racing–nascar–circuit of the americas–kyle larson

NASCAR CUP SERIES CIRCUIT OF THE AMERICAS ECHO PARK AUTOMOTIVE GRAND PRIX TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT MARCH 22, 2024

 
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of racing double duty in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Race at Circuit of The Americas. 

Media Availability Quotes: 

How do you expect the car to react at the road courses? Tyler Reddick said you can’t bring what you brought last year and expect it to still do the same thing. Are you anticipating the car handling any differently with the package this year than it did a year ago?“I have no idea, so yeah I don’t really know how to answer that.. other than I just assume with another year that the team has gotten smarter and better about setups, that our car is going to be driving better. Just like it did from 2022 to 2023, it drove better even though we had less downforce, I guess, last year. Now that we have more downforce, I would hope that the braking zones would be a little bit more comfortable. I remember last year being really uncomfortable in the brake zones.. a lot of us were. But then like through the corners, my car handled better. So now I’m hoping that the brake zones will be a little bit more comfortable, and then our car setup will be good through the corners and stuff, too. Wishful thinking, so we’ll see when we get out on the track tomorrow.”
You’ve got a win under your belt, so your season is obviously going pretty well. What is your forecast for some of the upcoming tracks like Richmond and things. What are focusing on as you get ready for Indy and other stuff you have going on the sidelines?“Yeah, I don’t know. I never try to look too far out in front. Yeah, I mean I don’t even know what race is after Richmond, honestly. So yeah, I mean these two weeks, I guess, is all I’m really looking at. I’ve been looking forward to this one for a while, just because I want to get better here. And it’s the first road course of the year, so it’s different and it’s fun. Studying all week and stuff like that is enjoyable. 
But then yeah, I don’t know. We’re tied for the point lead right now, so we’ve been doing something right. But yeah, we’d just like to continue the consistent runs. Continue getting good stage points at every race track, or at least having a good shot at the end of the race too. Yeah, it’s just been a goal of mine, is to try and do a better job throughout the regular season. I know we’re only five races in, but it’s been going well, so far. Just have to keep it up.”
Do you find yourself having a little bit more time to focus on the Indy 500 and things like that, or have you even thought about that yet? “I get asked that question every week (laughs).. what should I be doing?” 
(No mic.).. “I don’t know either. 
I feel like to this point, I’m as prepared as I can be. I’m just to the point now where I need to get on track. We get on track in a few weeks, and then I’ll get to be able to think more about the Indy 500. But also, I can’t take focus off of the Cup Series because it’s not like this stuff comes easy to me. It takes a lot of work, so I also have to dedicate a lot of time to this if I want to be doing my team justice on Sunday’s, as well. I race a lot of stuff and I prepare the same for all of it, so Indy is no different. Like I’m not racing a sprint car for another month, but I’m not worried about right now, either. I’m worried about right now. Maybe that will hurt me when it comes to Indy, but I don’t think it will. I’m not changing my process.”
The Drivers Council have been in effect for a few years. What are your impressions on how its evolved? “Yeah, that’s a good question. I think it’s evolved, for sure. I think even before the Drivers Council was ever established; I was a part of stuff.. some version of a Drivers Council like probably nine or more years ago. And just to see where it’s kind of come from since then has been promising. I feel like there’s way more open communication, trust amongst everybody.. all of that. I feel like we’re moving forward together a little bit, better than we used to. I mean it’s always been good. Even from its inception, I feel like it’s been decent. But I feel like now, there’s the trust level between everybody, which makes things a little bit nicer.”
Is there one thing you’d change in how this sport operates? “No.. I mean I’m just a driver.”
How do you expect to tackle the new restart zone here at COTA? Also, your thoughts on going back to stage cautions? “Yeah, I don’t know. I think we just have to see how the truck race plays out a little bit. But I would imagine the restart zone being to the final corner.. like when the leader takes off, the cars will still be kind of stuck going around that corner. So I believe, there should be less, kind of seven-wide, into turn one.. less divebombs, crashes and just craziness. Which is good, I think, because even fans last year were like, ‘this is kind of dumb’, right? Like we look like amateurs out there. So I think it will look a little bit more professional. I think you’re still going to have divebombs, for sure, but maybe not from four rows back. And then just shoving guys through the two rows in front of you. I think it’s going to be good. I think it’s going to be a nice compliment to what the drivers wanted, plus what everybody kind of needed, as far as just not crashing people.”
You mentioned how you’re tied for the point lead. When do you really begin to start looking at the regular season standings, as the regular season winds down? “Daytona.. I don’t know if other people are the same way, but I think if you take your eyes off of it too much, then you can get a little careless and then you get further behind. I’ve always paid attention to the points every week, and I would say most people probably do, as well. It’s always on your mind, especially when there’s playoff points being given at the end of the regular season. I think that makes you more aware of where you’re at in the standings, even with the one win that we have and knowing that we’re locked-in or whatever. It’s what, like 15-points I think, to win the regular season, and then it drops by five. I mean that’s like a full race win, so yeah it’s important to have the best regular season that you can to benefit yourself through the playoffs. 
In 2022 and 2023, yes we were pretty competitive, but we stumbled a lot in the regular season and didn’t finish very high in the regular season points, and then the playoffs were difficult where we were barely kind of squeaking by through some of the rounds. Ultimately at the (Charlotte) ROVAL in 2022, I missed it by three-points, where if I could have just finished a couple of spots in the regular season points, I would have made it through and racing in the Championship Four. So yeah, points are always on my mind. Maybe not necessarily during the race, but afterwards.”
Did you have a chance to see the onboard camera from Bristol last weekend that was floating around on social media? Did it feel like a real life video game when you were doing it, and would you ever want to participate in a race like that again? “Yeah, I watched the three-and-a-half minute clip that I saw on Twitter. Honestly, it was crazier from my seat than even like Twitter or the onboard. Like when I watched the onboard, I was like ‘man, this doesn’t look as wild as it was out of my windshield’. It just felt like when I left pit road.. which I thought I was screwed, right? Like I was one of the first people to pit and I thought for sure there would be a caution, and I was like my race is over. So I’m kind of just like, I didn’t even try hard coming to pit road.. didn’t try hard leaving. I went out there and I’m just like driving around people, and I was like ‘man, maybe we’re going to get this whole cycle through’. It was just wild. I felt like I was passing the same guy like very five laps. It was just nuts. I mean I would be like passing somebody on the bottom, and then like turn right mid-corner and drive around that guy before exit. It was just weird.. it was just like those weird dreams that you would have, like it wasn’t real life. 
It was fun. And don’t get me wrong, like I think a lot of people got me wrong last weekend and I didn’t probably show how much fun I had. But I was always smiling in all my post-race media stuff.. like I had a blast. I had a great time; it was just maybe I could have taken more time in explaining my comments like ‘I hope I don’t ever had to do this again’.. it was more that like, you couldn’t really manage your stuff. Yes, you could manage it three to seven more laps better, I guess, than some people. But it was just too short.. they were too short of little stints, I guess. If it was a little less extreme, we could kind of manage that throughout a little bit longer run. I would be all for that. 
And two, I would have loved for it to like laid a little bit of rubber so you could kind of move around and still push and pay for it if you needed to because how it was then, we were just so stuck to the bottom.. I hate to nitpick it, but it could have been a little bit better. But it was still fun.. I enjoyed it a lot. I’ve never been in a race like that. I’ve been in sprint car races like that, but they are like 25 or 30 lap races. That was 500 laps of like rubber down racing, where you’re just blowing through your tires without even trying. It was crazy.”
 
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Big River Steel Chase for the Championship – Presented by ARP Continues at Brownstown and Atomic

BATAVIA, Ohio (March 22, 2024) – The quest for the Big River Steel Chase for the Championship – Presented by ARP continues this week at Atomic Speedway and Brownstown Speedway.

Ricky Thornton Jr. leads the championship standings following the Georgia-Florida Speedweeks. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion will earn an industry high $200,000 of the over one million dollar point fund.

The year-long format will continue to award teams bonuses at four different intervals throughout the season. However, bonus points will not be awarded after each round. Drivers can still move up in points after each bonus round and be eligible for additional bonuses as the season winds down.

The Big River Steel Big Four will now be determined at the Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals on September 21. From there, the four championship contenders will battle for the 20th Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Championship at the remaining seven races of the season.

“A big thanks to Big River Steel, ARP, Sunoco Race Fuels, Summit Racing Equipment, and UNOH for their support of this format and the bonus money they all put into the points fund. 2024 is already shaping up to be another exciting season on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series,” stated Wayne Castleberry, Sales and Marketing for Lucas Oil Motorsports.

The four bonuses are:

Sunoco Road to Wheatland: May 25 at Lucas Oil Speedway; 32nd Annual Show-Me 100: 1. $2,500, 2. $1,500, 3. $1,500, 4. $1,500, 5. $1,500, 6. $1,000, 7. $1,000, 8. $1,000, 9. $1,000, 10. $1,000, 11. $500, 12. $500, 13. $500, 14. $500, 15. $500 = $16,000

Summit Racing Equipment Super Twelve: July 13 at Lucas Oil Speedway: 18th Annual Diamond Nationals: 1. $5,000, 2. $1,000, 3. $1,000, 4. $1,000, 5. $1,000, 6. $1,000, 7. $1,000, 8. $1,000, 9. $1,000, 10. $1,000, 11. $1,000, 12. $1,000 = $16,000

UNOH Great Eight: August 24 at Port Royal Speedway; The Rumble by the River: 1. $7,500, 2. $1,500, 3. $1,500, 4. $1,500, 5. $1,500, 6. $1,500, 7. $1,500, 8. $1,500 = $18,000

Big River Steel Big Four: September 21 at Knoxville Raceway; Late Model Knoxville Nationals: 1. $10,000, 2. $2,000, 3. $2,000, 4. $2,000 = $16,000

Big River Steel Big Four Championship Events:
Date – Venue – Event – To Win
Sept. 27 – Brownstown Speedway – 3rd Annual CJ Rayburn Memorial – $10,000
Sept. 28 – Brownstown Speedway – 45th Annual Jackson 100 – $50,000
Oct. 1 – Atomic Speedway – The Night the Stars Come Out – $20,000
Oct. 4 – Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway – 36th Annual Pittsburgher – $10,000
Oct. 5 – Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway – 36th Annual Pittsburgher – $50,000
Oct. 10 – East Bay Raceway Park – The Grand Finale (Prelim; Non-Points) – $5,000
Oct. 11 – East Bay Raceway Park – The Grand Finale (Prelim; Non-Points) – $5,000
Oct. 12 – East Bay Raceway Park – The Grand Finale – $50,000
Oct. 18 – Eldora Speedway – 44th Annual Dirt Track World Championship (Prelim; Non-Points)
Oct. 19 – Eldora Speedway – 44th Annual Dirt Track World Championship – $100,000

2024 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Point Fund:

  1. $200,000
  2. $150,000
  3. $125,000
  4. $100,000
  5. $75,000
  6. $60,000
  7. $50,000
  8. $45,000
  9. $40,000
  10. $35,000
  11. $30,000
  12. $25,000

Chase Bonuses: $66,000
Point Fund: $935,000
Total: $1,001,000

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