Author: Official Release

NASCAR CUP SERIES
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY R.C.
ROUND OF 12: ELIMINATION RACE
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
OCTOBER 12, 2024

 WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 VALVOLINE CONFETTI CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.

Media Availability Quotes:

YOU’RE LOCKED INTO THE NEXT ROUND. IN THIS RACE, AT THIS TRACK, WHERE IT’S EXPECTED TO BE CHAOTIC ON SUNDAY, HOW GOOD OF A FEELING IS IT THAT WHATEVER HAPPENS ON SUNDAY, IN THE GRAND SCHEME OF THINGS, IT WON’T EFFECT YOU?

“Yeah, it’s great.. it’s awesome. It changes the whole mood and vibe for the weekend, for sure. I mean, I haven’t really thought a lot about it, in terms of just trying to do the normal preparation and be ready for the race and try to go win. But yeah, there aren’t consequences for us, so that’s a great feeling and I feel like it’s one that we can take advantage of. We don’t have to worry about going out here in practice; try to ease into it. We can just try to send it and see what happens.”

DO YOU FEEL LIKE WHATEVER DOUBTS OR CONCERNS THAT WERE CIRCULATING AROUND YOUR TEAM ARE KIND OF ERASED NOW, AND THE NO. 24 TEAM IS AT THE SAME CALIBER AS THE OTHER TEAMS THAT ARE RACING FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP?

“Yeah, I mean this is the time of year that matters. I’m proud of our team for showing up. I knew we would. I’m confident in our group. I know that for us, winning races early in the season is great. We want to have success throughout the summer, but we were just a little bit up and down. But yeah, now is when it counts and our team showed up, so I’m excited for the Round of Eight, for sure.”

NOW THAT YOU’VE HAD A CHANCE TO WATCH SOME OF THE XFINITY SERIES PRACTICE AND LOOKING AT THE LAYOUT, WHAT ARE YOUR INITIAL READS ON THIS CIRCUIT AND LAYOUT?

“I mean, it looks really similar to what sim was like. So for us, it’s really status quo. I feel like turns six and seven are definitely different. But yeah, it looks a little bit awkward. Turn six is definitely awkward.. the way that you load into there. There’s a crest to the hill. There’s some paint that’s going to rubber in and gain some grip as the weekend goes that you’ll have all four tires on. Turn seven is a U-turn, really. It’s a very different corner.. no banking whatsoever. So I think you’ll see a lot of dive bombs there, for sure, and some spins because of that. I’m just curious to get out there. Hopefully we can qualify well.

Oh and the frontstretch chicane, too, is slightly different. But yeah, I’m excited.”

I’M PRETTY SURE THE CURRENT TOP-EIGHT ABOVE THE CUTLINE ARE IN THE HIGHEST SCORING POINT EARNERS THIS YEAR. WHAT DOES THAT SAY TO YOU ABOUT THE CALIBER OF TEAMS THAT PRETTY MUCH, DESPITE ALL THE CHAOTIC RACES AND THE SCHEDULING, THE TOP-EIGHT TEAMS ARE THE TOP-EIGHT OF THE PLAYOFFS?

“Yeah, if it stays the way it is now, it will be a really entertaining and competitive Round of Eight, you know because there won’t be any guys that are kind of easing their way in. So I think it will be really competitive. I am a bit surprised by that, based on the way the schedule was this year with the two superspeedways and two road courses in the playoffs. But so far, everyone has kind of adapted to it. The speedway racing has been a bit different in the playoffs this year. I feel like everyone is taking care of each other, for the most part, until some of the wrecks last weekend. But overall, I feel like guys are scoring a lot of stage points and staying up towards the front, which is unique at superspeedways. You never know what can happen.

And then, I feel like Watkins Glen was just a wildcard. So yeah, I’m a bit surprised. But at the same time, I know that the Round of Eight is going to be really competitive.”

ADVANCING TO THE ROUND OF EIGHT WITH A WEEK TO SPARE, WHERE NOBODY ELSE IN THE PLAYOFFS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO THAT IN THIS ROUND, WHAT KIND OF AN EDGE DOES THAT GIVE THE NO. 24 TEAM? WHERE DO YOU GUYS CENTER THAT FOCUS.. IS THERE ONE OF THOSE THREE RACES THAT YOU GUYS REALLY FOCUS ON PREPARATION-WISE?

“Yeah, I mean it just allows us to get started on Las Vegas. We’ve already looked at tape; reviewed our setup and started to get an idea of what we need for Vegas. We were good there in the spring, until we had the trash bag on the grill. Honestly if we can just go there with similar speed, and similar speed to what we had at Kansas, I think we’ll be right there in the mix. Last year was a bit disappointing in Vegas. We weren’t as good as we thought we would be, even though we had a few week to prepare. So I think we’ll probably do some things a little bit differently this time around. But we already have a good head start on it. Its been two years in a row that we’ve been able to kind of cruise through this Round of 12, and that’s been really nice for our team to think ahead a little bit. But we still want to win this weekend. We still put effort into the ROVAL setup and try to go out here and be good tomorrow.”

I KNOW THAT MARTINSVILLE LAST YEAR IN THE FALL WAS A STRUGGLE FOR YOU GUYS. IS THAT ANY CONCERN FOR YOU?

“I mean, yeah – we won there in the spring, so it’s pretty much fixed. But I think yeah, it’s been a hit or miss place. So I feel like for us, we just have to do more of the hitting. The way the spring was, was great. We had a really strong car in the spring, and we were one of the few guys that could pass people. We started 18th. We’d like to qualify a little better because you never know how difficult it will be to get through the field. So yeah, that’s probably my focus way long term.. try to qualify better at Martinsville and see where that takes us.”

OBVIOUSLY THERE’S BIG TALK ABOUT STRATEGY – WHO’S GOING TO PIT EARLY TO TRY AND GO FOR THE WIN.. WHO’S GOING TO STAY OUT AND TRY TO GET STAGE POINTS. DOES THAT KIND OF STREAMLINE THE PROCESS FOR YOU GUYS, THAT HEY – MAYBE YOU CAN GET A COUPLE MORE PLAYOFF POINTS FOR THE NEXT ROUND AND KIND OF HELP WITH THAT CUSHION?

“Yeah, I think if we’re not very good tomorrow, then we might try and go for the stage win. But it’s tough here because pit road only takes 30 seconds, I believe, including the pit stop. So it’s a big advantage to short-pit here because you can still come out and get stage points. I think the No. 20 did that last year. When he came out, he lost like three positions. I think the lap times being slower this year, it might be more that way. So it will be tough for these guys that don’t – if you’re not running well, I don’t think you’re going to just luck into some stage points. I think you’re going to have to be upfront. So it’ll be interesting, but I’m excited to watch everyone else; see how nervous they are and just go race.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA IF YOU HAVE A TEST SETUP OR A DIFFERENT SETUP THAN THE OTHER THREE FOR PRACTICE, SINCE YOU’RE ALREADY LOCKED IN?

“I don’t think so.. not that we’ve talked about. Just maybe making a little bit more changes in practice to figure out things for next year, in terms of what the changes do at road courses. Watkins Glen wasn’t great for us, but I feel like we’ve got a pretty good base.

No, I don’t think we came here with like something way different. I think we’re all really similar, which is pretty common every week. But I think just maybe try and learn some stuff in practice. With two 20 minute sessions, we might try and use the first 20 minutes to really come in and make a lot of changes and see what we can learn.”

DENNY HAMLIN SAID THE RECONFIGURATION WAS INTENDED TO CREATE MORE CHAOS. YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE TO CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE, HE SAID. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHETHER DRIVERS LIKE YOU CAN ADAPT AND LEARN TO LIKE IT, IF YOU THINK IT’S GOING TO CREATE CHAOS?

“Well I mean, as drivers, we’re going to adapt and learn to whatever the challenge is, whether it’s dirt, this or whatever. Yeah, that’s all during the week speak, for sure. Once you get out there, I know each person is going to put their full effort in; try to be openminded, learn and be good at it. So yeah, I don’t know how it’s going to change who’s good or not. I did, personally, like the old section. We were really good here last year, and really every year. It’s different, but we did simulation this week, and we tried to get through that section a little better. I do think, on paper, there’s really no other reason, it doesn’t look like. So it was just creating something different, probably, and making it just a different challenge, which probably creates some carnage, I guess.”

HOW MUCH CHAOS DO YOU THINK WE’LL SEE AND WHAT’S YOUR THOUGHT ON DIVE BOMBS, BOTH FROM YOU AND FROM OTHERS?

“Yeah, I mean the way that corner is shaped, there’s no other option. If you’re close to somebody, somebody is going to try and out-brake. I feel like maybe it’s so tight that if somebody does out-brake, they could potentially miss the corner, go past it and you could cross under. We’ll see how that plays out. But yeah, I think that’s going to be a passing zone, for sure. And then we’ll just see how it goes.”

YOU GUYS WON AT LAS VEGAS AND I’M CURIOUS – ARE YOU GUYS CONCENTRATING ON IT BECAUSE A LOT OF TIMES, WHEN YOU DO WIN THAT RACE, THEN YOU CAN JUST START WORKING ON PHOENIX AND PUT ALL YOUR EGGS IN THAT BASKET?

“Well I mean, I haven’t thought about it like that, for sure. I think it’s just the first race of the round. You want to be good out of the gate. You want to try and win in the Round of Eight, for sure, but try to create a good points buffer and see how it goes. It just only gets more and more difficult as you go into the Round of Eight, like we saw last year. We were in a great spot starting the Round of Eight on bonus points.. we had 41 points last year and I think when we came out of Vegas, we were only like seven points above the cutline. So it’s just nice to go there with a focus, a plan and try to win that race because then it opens up the rest of the year and just makes it easier.”

WE HAD A ROUND WITH NON-PLAYOFF DRIVERS WINNING. ARE YOU SURPRISED BY THAT, AND DO YOU THINK THAT TREND COULD CONTINUE HERE?

“Well I mean, yeah – I think SVG is in the race and there’s some really good guys. You can just be more aggressive if you’re not in the playoffs, typically. If you’re in the playoffs, you’re counting points and you’re trying to get yourself in position. That all changes in the next round, slightly. But this round for sure, you’re just trying to get through these events. For us, it doesn’t matter. I think we’ll be in the group that’s like the non-playoff guys.. it’s more aggressive. So it’ll be nice to do that.”

THE NEWS CAME OUT THIS WEEK ABOUT THE DVP RULE. WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO THAT? WITH A RACE LIKE THIS, HOW DO YOU SEE THAT POSSIBLY PLAYING OUT, IF THINGS DO GO SOUTH?

“You know, I feel like we’re through all those races that the DVP is going to be more of an issue. I mean, in the Round of Eight; if you’re crashing, you’re probably not going to make it through anyways. You know, those races are probably behind us, hopefully. I don’t know.. I guess the ROVAL could be that way, maybe. But we’re going kind of slow around here. In the infield, I feel like you could nurse it back without flat tires. The flat tires are just created from speed, locking the brakes up and stuff.

I don’t know.. I don’t really pay too much attention to it. That’s kind of other peoples’ jobs.”

YOU’VE LED THE SECOND MOST LAPS HERE OF ALL DRIVERS AND THE MOST BY DRIVERS THAT HAVEN’T WON. WHAT SECTIONS OF THE TRACK, IN PARTICULAR, DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU EXCEL AT THE MOST?

“The old section (laughs). So yeah, I was good through the old section and good through the old chicane. I guess I’m OK through (turns) one, two and three. We’ll see, but it’ll be a new learning curve, for sure. We’ll see how that goes.”

 

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Toyota Racing – Erik Jones
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

CONCORD, N.C. (October 12, 2024) – LEGACY MOTOR CLUB driver Erik Jones was made available to the media on Saturday prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL.

ERIK JONES, No. 43 Family Dollar Toyota Camry XSE, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB

Can you expand on the partnership with the pink window nets this weekend?

“Yeah, it has been great. We took over the program last year, and it was a little bit last minute. We didn’t have a lot of opportunity to take it in our hand. This year, we had a lot more lead in and more time to develop the program. I feel like we were able to work with Thermal Control Products a lot and really develop that relationship with Colleen (Matte) over there, and that has been great for us, but at the end of the day, what it is really about is raising money for breast cancer and early detection and prevention. That is a huge pillar of our foundation and has been from the start – three years ago and looking forward to seeing the window nets on the cars and raising some great money for it and for the cause. Partnered up with Blue Cross Blue Shield, as well, so should be a fun couple of days.”

What has been the most eye-opening thing for you with your foundation the last few years?

“I think it is all of it. Having a foundation is no walk in the park, by any stretch of the imagination. There is a lot of time and effort that goes into it – not just from my part, but from our foundation director Brent’s (Nickola) part, from the volunteers to our board members – there is so much that goes into the foundation and making the world go round – that side of it is a lot, but the reward is the grant making that we get to do. We are starting to make those discussions right now about the money we have raised this year, where that is going to go. This program is obviously huge for us this year, and what we are going to raise for breast cancer prevention and early detection. The grant making is the best part of it. It makes all of the work worth it. Some days there is some long days, and a lot of time put into it, but you can really put it back and see it pay off and get to hand that grant over. That makes it all worthwhile.”

Do you expect Ben Beshore to be your crew chief next year and does it help that Ben has been a part of the Toyota program for years?

“I would say that it is a trial period currently. It looks like that’s going to be the rest of the season – here with five races left. As far as next year goes, I don’t know how that alignment looks. We haven’t got that far down the road, so I’m getting to know Ben (Beshore) and getting to know him through these next few. As far as what the change looks like, obviously, we haven’t performed where we have wanted too, so at the end of the day, you have to do something different, whether him being involved in that system longer makes a big difference, I’m not sure. I haven’t worked with Ben one-on-one this season, only from a far, so I don’t really know the answer to that, but I think right now it is a trial period to hopefully see some change and see some results. We want to get something moving in a different direction.”

What did it mean to you to be given this opportunity by Kurt Busch after his retirement?

“Well, huge opportunity. It would have been a lot of leg work for us to initially make a program like this happen. Kurt (Busch) at the end of the day, did a lot of the leg work before we were able to take it over and make this program a thing to begin with, so when we had the opportunity to inherit it, it just gave us a great chance to make it our own and hopefully, improve it and make it bigger and better. The leg work that he put in on the front side would have been a big challenge for us to get going. That was a huge honor. Excited to keep it going. I think it is a program that has been extremely visual in the Cup Series for the last handful of years that it has been active. For me, it was something that I was really, really pumped to take on. You see a lot of different initiatives through the season from different drivers, from in the car, whether it is gloves or names on the cars – different ways that they raise money for foundations, but the pink window net program has probably been the most visual of them all, and I was pretty excited to bring it to our foundation.”

Do you have any additional upcoming events with the foundation?

“This will be the last one for the year. We do our two events – we had our Clays for Causes event earlier this year, and then we had our Three Reasons to Race event pretty recently, just a couple of weeks ago in Michigan, to finish out our actual fundraisers, and this is kind of our last one for the year, before the year ends for us. Working on next year and getting everything going again, but this is the last one for now.”

What are you looking for the next five races?

“We had such and up and down run the whole year. We haven’t had as many flashes of speed as I would have hoped. I felt like, even last year, we had more flashes of speed, and we really haven’t been able to recreate that this year. Just some consistency, and whether that means some top-20s, top-15 right now – that’s a good day for us, staying on the lead lap. If we can finish out the next five in that area, I think that is a step forward, and then continuing to gain in the off season, but right now, it is realistic goals. You want to win, but I think, right now, top-20’s are pretty good. Talladega was obviously great with a top-five, but these top-20s, top-15s would be nice to finish the season out.”

How do you get through a season like this?

“It is up and down. Some years you just can’t do anything right, and it has been one of those seasons, but probably, by far, one of the most trying I’ve had in most of my racing career, and for sure in the Cup Series, so yeah, that is tough. I guess being through it a bit has helped some. It is not like this is the first down year that we’ve had, so you just have to take it for what it is. Fortunately, I’ve been at it for a while now, I feel like I’m a pretty level head guy in general, which probably helps out, but setting realistic goals, taking the days for what they are worth is the biggest thing for me, and hopefully, moving on. We are not stagnant I guess is the thing. We have a light at the end of the tunnel. If you feel like, you are running poorly and doing the same things, you are going to get down, but right now, I feel like we are making a lot of changes and that gives you some hope, so looking forward to that is the biggest thing that has been keeping me positive.”

When you look at this year, what needs to improve?

“I wish I could give you one thing and say that was the answer. In general, we don’t have any speed. We don’t have it right now, so that is tough. To fix that, it is not necessarily one part. It is not one person. It is not one tool. It is not one test away. It is a handful of pieces that we probably need to get better. It is a process that has to get better. It is people we are moving around currently. It is people that we are hiring currently, and all that takes time, and with the people that we’ve brought in, when you start a new job, you don’t know all that is going on. You don’t know how your company works and where things are and what you are able to access. The people we have brought on are good people, but they still have to have time to learn what is happening and figure out a plan from there. That takes some time. I don’t think there is any magic in the sport now. There is not some part or piece you are going to build or find that is going to make you fast. It is the matter of doing every little thing correctly and adding them all. That is not an easy thing to do. It is probably easy to get your cars from running 30th to 20th, but from running 20th to top-five – that is a lot of magic in there that is not easy to find, so that is going to take some time for us.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 12 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 13th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 29 electrified options.

For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL… Richard Childress Racing has 13 NASCAR Cup Series starts at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL. Tyler Reddick owns the company’s best finish, a second-place effort in 2021. Both RCR Chevrolets captured top-10 results in 2022 (Reddick – eighth; Austin Dillon – 10th). Kyle Busch led RCR in 2023 with a third-place finish.

RCR’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Stats at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL… RCR has made 10 starts at the ROVAL in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, highlighted by Tyler Reddick’s second-place finish in 2019. The Welcome, N.C., organization has six top-10 finishes dating back to the inaugural event in 2018. The best qualifying effort by an RCR driver is second-place by Daniel Hemric (2018) and Tyler Reddick (2019). Sheldon Creed led 18 laps in the 2022 race, the most at the ROVAL by an RCR driver.

Catch the Action on Saturday… The NASCAR Xfinity Series Drive for the Cure 250 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL will be televised live on Saturday, October 12, beginning at 4 p.m. ET on The CW. The race will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Follow Sunday’s Cup Series Race… The NASCAR Cup Series Bank of America ROVAL 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL will be televised live on Sunday, October 13, beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC. The race will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 BetMGM Chevrolet at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL… Charlotte Motor Speedway is Austin Dillon’s home track. Growing up, Dillon watched many races from his grandfather’s condo with his family. In six NASCAR Cup Series starts at the ROVAL, Dillon earned his best finish of 10th in October 2022 and has completed 93 percent of the laps run at the 17-turn road course. Dillon is a previous winner on Charlotte Motor Speedway’s oval configuration, sweeping both NASCAR Xfinity races at the track in 2015 and earning his career-first NASCAR Cup Series win in the Coca-Cola 600 in 2017.

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Meet Dillon… On Friday, October 11 at 1 p.m. ET, Dillon is scheduled to make an appearance at the Huk store in the Charlotte Premium Outlets (5512 New Fashion Way, Charlotte, NC 28278 Suite #1055). Stop by to shop some of Dillon’s favorite Huk styles and try to beat his time on a RCR race simulator. Dillon is scheduled to greet race fans at the RCR Merchandise Trailer in the Fan Midway at Charlotte Motor Speedway at 10: 45 a.m. ET on Sunday, October 13. Meet the driver of the No. 3 Chevrolet and get new RCR gear.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:

What are your thoughts on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL?

“It’s always nice to compete at your hometown track. I have confidence leading into the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL this year because we have worked hard on our road course races. We’ve put a lot of time and effort into road course cars. This weekend we aim to carry on the momentum into finishing races like we have in the past few weeks.”

Kyle Busch and the No. 8 Lenovo Chevrolet at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL… Kyle Busch will make his seventh NASCAR Cup Series start at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL this weekend. The driver of the Lenovo Chevrolet has reeled off three consecutive top-five finishes at the North Carolina road course, including a third-place finish in the 2023 event. Busch finished fourth in 2021 and completed 97.56 percent of the possible laps at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL (641 of a possible 657 laps).

Stat of the Week… Busch leads all active Cup Series drivers with three top-five finishes at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL.

Road Course Successes… Busch has racked up four wins (two at Watkins Glen International and two at Sonoma Raceway) along with 19 top-five and 29 top-10 finishes in 55 career road course races in Cup Series competition.

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KYLE BUSCH QUOTES:

There have been changes made to the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL configuration. Do you think that will create additional passing zones and improve the quality of racing?

“Anytime there are changes made to a road course I think it is always directed towards creating additional passing zones and improving the quality of racing, so hopefully that happens. I think the area of the racetrack before in Turns 6, 7 and 8 was always single file, follow the leader, so maybe now you’ll have guys pull out a line and try to make a pass in the hairpin before getting back up on the big track.”

Would you be in favor of changing the course layout of a street course or the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL every few years to mix things up?

“I’m more in favor of going to different, permanent courses than street courses or rovals.”

Jesse Love and the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL… Jesse Love will make his inaugural start at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL this weekend. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year points leader has prepared for the new course layout by spending hours on the Chevrolet Tech Center simulator, walking the track, and watching past races.

Round of 12 Cutoff… With one race remaining in the Round of 12, Love currently sits sixth in the Xfinity Series playoff championship point standings. The 19-year-old driver has a 22-point advantage over the cutline and needs to secure a maximum of 41 points (without help) to advance to the Round of 8.

About Whelen Engineering… Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce.

Meet Love… On Saturday, October 12 at 1 p.m. ET, Love and his RCR teammate Austin Hill are scheduled to sign autographs at the RCR Merchandise Hauler in the Fan Midway at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Stop by to meet the Chevrolet drivers and purchase new gear.

JESSE LOVE QUOTES:

Having never competed at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, what are your initial thoughts of the course?

“I walked the track on Monday morning to get a good look at it. It’s pretty interesting, but it looks fun. The hairpin in Turn 7 is going to create added chaos, and I’m honestly not sure what to think about the backstretch chicane yet. It should create a different pass zone, but not too much different than before. Turn 7 will add to the race and could make it easier to pass cars if you’re within a few car lengths of the guy in front of you. I’ve put my heart and soul into this race and have been working on it since Watkins Glen International, so I’m as prepared as I can be.”

How does a younger driver like yourself be a sponge to learn as much as possible in only six road course races over the course of the season?

“I’ve been pretty good – fair – at the road courses so far this season. We ran sixth at Circuit of the Americas, had a shot to win at Sonoma Raceway, and had an okay day at Watkins Glen International most recently. I need to step up my game just a little bit on the road courses though. Having guys like Connor Zilisch, SVG, and AJ Allmendinger in our series makes the rest of us work harder at it. They make us level up to their level. I’ve put a lot of work into it and learned a couple of things to hone in on for road course races. Right after Watkins Glen International, I realized how big of a race this weekend was going to be. It’s a huge opportunity race, so getting the reps in before arriving has been important for me.”

Austin Hill and the No. 21 Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL… Austin Hill has made four career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, dating back to 2020. One season ago, while driving the Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet, Hill started from the eighth position and finished a career-best ninth place.

One to Go in the Round of 12… With one race remaining in the Round of 12 for the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Hill currently sits fourth in the playoff championship point standings. The Winston, Georgia native has a 37-point advantage over the cutline and needs to secure a maximum of 34 points (without help) to advance to the next round.

About Bennett Family of Companies… McDonough-Ga. based Bennett Family of Companies is a woman-owned, Women’s Enterprise Business Council (WBENC) certified, diversified transportation and logistics company. Through its 14 affiliated operating companies, the Bennett Family of Companies delivers integrated transportation and supply chain management solutions worldwide. Bennett has 4,625 drivers/owner-operators, over 1,000 employees and 600 agents located across the United States. For more information, visit www.bennettig.com.

Meet Hill… On Saturday, October 12 at 1 p.m. ET, Hill and his RCR teammate Jesse Love are scheduled to sign autographs at the RCR Merchandise Hauler in the Fan Midway at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Stop by to meet the Chevrolet drivers and purchase new gear.

AUSTIN HILL QUOTES:

With the new course updates to the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, how have you prepared and what do you expect?

“We have run simulator time at the Chevrolet Tech Center in Concord to prepare for this weekend’s race. The new course design is a lot different than what we have run in the past. Turn 7 is going to be an extremely tight corner, so I think there is going to be a lot of bonsai moves and carnage happening there. The change to the backstretch chicane makes it tighter with it being more of a 90-degree corner now. You need a car that will turn really good through all of those tight sections, but you can’t be too loose. It’s a balance of needing to be free though to have good switch backs. Turn 7 will definitely be one to watch.”

On a scale of one to 10, where does your road course game stack up?

“I obviously can’t put myself at a 10 since we haven’t won yet, but I think I’m a solid seven. There have been so many road course races that our No. 21 team has had a shot at winning over the last several years. We have either come up a little short or a late race restart has prevented us from capturing a win. But if you look at it from a whole, I’m a little bit of an underdog when it comes to road course racing, and I like it that way. We always seem to find ourselves inside the top-five at the end when it matters though.”