Author: Official Release

5 KYLE LARSON
 Age: 32 (July 31, 1992)
Hometown: Elk Grove, California
Last Week: 1st (Bristol)
Crew Chief: Cliff Daniels
Standings: 1st

No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Kyle Larson’s 462 laps led in his victory at Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday night was the most ever by a Hendrick Motorsports driver in a single race. The Elk Grove, California, native has now finished in the top 10 in his last six starts at Bristol. That ties his longest such streak at any track, matching Phoenix Raceway and this weekend’s stop, Kansas Speedway.
• The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion is now tied for 30th on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins list with Rex White and Carl Edwards at 28 wins. Larson has the most wins in the Next Gen car with 12.
• Larson is the only driver to have eclipsed the 1,000-laps-led barrier in 2024 with 1,551 – 634 more than any other driver. His 12 stage wins are two more than anyone else.
• Larson’s win earlier this season at Kansas was the closest finish in Cup Series history. He crossed the finish line 0.001 seconds ahead of Chris Buescher. Larson is the only repeat winner in the last eight races at Kansas.
• The driver of the No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet has won 11 of 39 stages on 1.5-mile tracks in the Next Gen car (28%) and 4 of 18 races (22%).
• In the Next Gen car, a driver has had an average running position of better than 1.5 ten times – Larson accounts for seven of those occasions. The 32-year-old driver’s average running position this year is a Series-best 9.61. No other driver has an average running position in single digits.
• Larson is one of only two drivers to have finished top 10 at Kansas in all five Next Gen starts. In 1.5-mile races during the Next Gen era, Larson has four wins, double that of second place.
• Larson is 39 markers ahead of the elimination line entering the Round of 12. He has 15 more playoff points than any other driver.

9 CHASE ELLIOTT
Age: 28 (Nov. 28, 1995)
Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia
Last week: 2nd (Bristol)
Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson
Standings: 7th (-33)
 
No. 9 UniFirst Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Chase Elliott heads into the opening race in the Round of 12 seventh in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings, six points above the elimination line.
• Elliott is the only Cup Series driver with wins at all three tracks in the Round of 12 (Kansas Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and Charlotte ROVAL). The 2020 Cup Series champion captured a victory at Kansas in the fall of 2018.
• Elliott is riding a streak of three consecutive top-10 finishes at Kansas, placing third there in the spring. He has also finished inside the top 10 in the three most recent races on 1.5-mile tracks, which kicked off with his victory at Texas Motor Speedway in April.
• The Hendrick Motorsports driver has earned the fourth-most points among playoff drivers across the first three postseason events.
• No. 9 team jackman TJ Semke hails from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, less than 40 miles from Kansas Speedway. The 31-year-old was a part-time bounty hunter before playing football at the University of Kansas as a defensive lineman. Semke signed with Hendrick Motorsports in 2016 and has been with team since 2018.

24 WILLIAM BYRON
 Age: 26 (Nov. 29, 1997)
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Last Week: 17th (Bristol)
Crew Chief: Rudy Fugle
Standings: 4th (-25)

No. 24 Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• William Byron collected enough points to advance into the Round of 12 of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. He collected 72 points with 21 of those being stage points, tied for the fifth most.
• Heading into the first race of the second round, Byron is currently fourth in the playoff standings, 14 markers above the cutoff.
• Byron has seven top-10 finishes at Kansas Speedway, tied for a personal best at a track with Martinsville Speedway and Phoenix Raceway.
• Byron has two wins in the Next Gen car on 1.5-mile tracks, tied for the second most, and has earned the most points of all drivers with 675.
• In 2024, Byron has run within the top five for 1,964 laps (seventh most), within the top 10 for 4,030 laps (sixth most) and has an average running position of 13.276, good enough for eighth best.

48 ALEX BOWMAN
 Age: 31 (April 25, 1993)
Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
Last Week: 9th (Bristol)
Crew Chief: Blake Harris
Standings: T-11th (-45)
 
No. 48 Ally Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Last weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway, Alex Bowman finished ninth to advance to the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Bowman earned 17 more points than any other driver in the Round of 16. He leads the field in stage points earned in the playoffs (41) and is the only driver to finish in the top 10 in all six stages.
• Bowman was fourth at the end of the Round of 16. With the playoff standings points resetting heading into the Round of 12 opener at Kansas Speedway, Bowman ranks 11th, seven points below the cutline. The Tucson, Arizona, native has advanced to the Round of 12 in every previous playoff appearance (six) and reached the Round of 8 once (2020).
• Bowman has seven top-five finishes this season and 14 top-10 finishes (four-way tie for third most). All his Hendrick Motorsports teammates, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott and William Byron also have 14 top 10s.
• At Kansas Speedway, Bowman holds the third-longest active top-10 streak with four. The streak is Bowman’s best at a track behind only the Charlotte ROVAL (five). In this year’s May race at the “Sunflower State” venue, Bowman earned 34 points, fifth most of playoff drivers. In his previous 17 starts there, he has led 183 laps, scored three top fives (his second most at a track) and nine top 10s (his most at a track).
• In 2024, on tracks 1.5-miles long, Bowman has earned 100 points, seventh most of the remaining playoff drivers. He is one of 11 drivers to claim a win at a 1.5-mile track in the Next Gen car (Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 2022).
• Ally Racing brought back Koker’s garage this year and No. 48 fans had the opportunity to design the special edition paint scheme that will run on track this weekend. Christina Knoll, from New Orleans, is the this year’s winner. Her son, Andrew, played a key role in helping design the winning scheme.
• This Sunday, Bowman fans can ride along and from the driver’s seat by tuning into NASCAR’s in-car camera on the No. 48 Chevrolet Camero ZL1.
• For four years, Bowman and Ally have teamed up to support Best Friends Animal Society and their vast network of partners. Every race weekend, the pair donates $4,800 to help homeless pets. This weekend, the charitable donation will go to Prairie Paws Animal Shelter located in Ottawa, Kansas.

Hendrick Motorsports

*Most
**Tied for most

• Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman combined to lead 496 of 500 laps at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night, including every green flag circuit.
• This Sunday at Kansas Speedway will mark the 1,375th NASCAR Cup Series race for Hendrick Motorsports.
• The four Hendrick Motorsports entries will all carry the name of a cancer hero in place of driver names as part of the Honor A Cancer Hero program this weekend at Kansas Speedway. Bowman will honor Kenneth Chase from Sebago, Maine. Chase was nominated by his widow, Esther, as the two fought cancer simultaneously before Kenneth ultimately lost his battle. Chase Elliott will carry the name of Bill Roberts, a Thomaston, Georgia, native who beat kidney cancer. William Byron will honor Stephanie Kearns of Anaheim, California. Kearns beat a breast cancer diagnosis. Finally, Larson will run the name of Sid Coxe, a New Orleans native and car enthusiast who succumbed to liver cancer just after his 60th birthday in 2015. Last year, the program generated over $100,00 to support integrative therapies for women and children undergoing cancer treatments and child life services.
• In 37 races at Kansas, Hendrick Motorsports leads all other NASCAR Cup Series teams in most categories including wins (nine), poles (six), top-five finishes (46), top-10 finishes (85) and laps led (2,190).
• At least two Hendrick Motorsports cars have finished in the top 10 in each of the last 12 Kansas races and at least three of the team’s entries have finished in the top 10 in the last four.
• This marks the fourth time all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers made the Round of 12 (2014, 2021, 2022, 2024), the most times any team has advanced four drivers through the opening round.
• Hendrick Motorsports has gone to victory lane 59 times in playoff races, 22 more than any other team.
• All four Hendrick Motorsports pit crews rank in the top eight in terms of average time for a four-tire pit stop. That list is topped by the No. 9 over-the-wall squad at 10.83 seconds. Chase Elliott’s crew also turned in the fastest individual four-tire stop of the season with a time of 9.076 seconds at Texas Motor Speedway in April.

 
QUOTABLE /
 
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on winning at Kansas this year: “I had a great run off two and down the backstretch and was able to get to [Chis Buescher’s] outside getting into 3. It was so tight at the line and I guess TV showed us second — and I was fine with that because it was a great battle at the end. But then to hear we won was incredible.”

Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on heading into the first race in the Round of 12: “The last race at Kansas was pretty good for us. Heading back there, we need to qualify a little better and score more stage points. Those stage points are going be really critical moving forward here in these playoffs. They’re always critical, but there’s a big emphasis on stage points. We’re no different than anybody else. Everybody knows this is a good opportunity to go control your own destiny and have a really good race. Obviously, a win would be the first goal and then past that would be stage points and good finishes. So, I expect this race to be highly contested, to say the least. I think everybody is going to be under the same impression that this is their best chance to control their own destiny and kind of want to take advantage of that. So, I’m looking forward to that. I enjoy going there just because you can race and pass and have some strategy. A lot is in your hands at Kansas.”

William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on why he enjoys racing at Kansas Speedway: “I’m excited to get to Kansas. That’s a track we’ve had a lot of speed at. I think we have a good notebook heading into this race based on our experiences and our teammates’. We got behind in the spring after hitting the wall in qualifying, but even then we had good speed and strategy to make up ground. Hopefully we get a better starting spot for this race and can execute at a high level like I know our team can.”

Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on going to Kansas Speedway: “It’s been a really good place for me, it’s probably my favorite mile and a half, so, enjoy racing there a lot and have certainly been close to winning there before. So, I’m looking forward to it. Statistically, it’s been a really good place for us so hopefully we can put together a really good race this weekend.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Kansas Media Availability
Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Austin Cindric, driver of the No. 2 Menards/Moen Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Team Penske, kicks off the Round of 12 in ninth place, four points below the cut line. He was part of a NASCAR press conference earlier today in which he discussed this weekend’s race at Kansas Speedway and the key to getting through this round.

AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 2 Menards/Moen Ford Mustang Dark Horse – HOW DO YOU FEEL YOU GUYS STACK UP ON THE MILE AND A HALVES WITH THE OTHER TEAMS? “I think it’s been awhile since we’ve had a traditional mile and a half race. We kind of had a string of races in May and early on in the year, and Michigan I thought was a decent event for us, but obviously that’s a two-mile oval, so I think it’s gonna be a great read for where we’re at. There are two of those with Homestead and Vegas in the Round of 8, so I think whatever progress we’ve made and whatever we’ve learned throughout the year, yeah, I wouldn’t necessarily say it was a strength to start the year for us, but certainly a lot learned since then.”

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS ROUND, WINNING MOVES YOU ON BUT BEYOND THAT WHAT IS YOUR PATHWAY TO THE THIRD ROUND? “I think, for us, it’s really replicating a similar performance from the Round of 16, the first round for us. You look at the numbers and what we did for the past round is probably the bare minimum of what’s gonna get us to advance for this round, so from a points perspective it definitely gets more challenging, especially the deficit we have to the top four or five guys. It definitely becomes more of an issue when you start to eliminate guys that are in a similar space as far as points go as what we are. Otherwise, a win obviously is what you want to do, especially to be able to do it in the first two races. That makes things a lot easier, but I think, for us, I still think this is a no-mistakes round, this is don’t take yourself out of it and race within our limits.”

WITH THE CHANGES DOES IT MAKE IT MORE DICIER THAN BEFORE AT THE CHARLOTTE ROVAL? “I’m not sure if the track layout changes make it more of a challenge or less of a challenge of a racetrack. I think it just makes it different. I think anytime you have a bit of an unknown there are different things you might need in your car that you don’t know of or a different way that the race is gonna be more challenging. I think the hairpin there could make the restarts and the racing may be a bit more dynamic. I think that’s the hope. The frontstretch chicane just, to me, seems like it’s different and it might change the launch of restarts. It’s kind of yet to be seen. I’m hearing a couple different iterations. I don’t think the track is completely finished with their updates yet, so I’m definitely curious to see how that evolves over the next few weeks leading up to the race.”

HOW ABOUT THE CHANGES TO THE INFIELD. WILL IT BE A STEEPER DECLINE? “Yeah, what I remember is the hairpin. That would be I guess the new turn seven, kind of where turn eight used to be, so from what I’ve gathered there’s a pretty big elevation change going down into the new turn six, which will be kind of interesting, whether if we get cars off the ground or not through there. I got to do a couple laps in the sim once we got the updates this week, just to kind of see what it was like and it will be interesting to see if we keep all four on the ground going over that hill.”

WHAT ARE A COUPLE KEYS TO HAVING A SUCCESSFUL PLAYOFF RACE AT TALLADEGA? “Finishing is number one. I would say next, for us these races have been great for stage points. I think to be able to do that, you have to execute strategy, but I think qualifying matters for that as well for the first stage, if not for the first two. The racing, obviously, gets crazy there and being able to work with your teammates. All three of us are in the playoffs right now, so being able to work with those guys – and we all have similar priorities – so I think those three things, qualifying, strategy and not getting wrecked, that’s kind of every week, but you can really control your destiny if you can control those values.”

WHAT QUALITIES MAKE FOR A GOOD SUPERSPEEDWAY RACE IN THIS ERA? “I think it’s ever changing. I think from a driver’s standpoint, just kind of recognizing the position that you’re in, really. Like, what role do you have within the pack. The reason I say that is you don’t necessarily have as many options to kind of move forward throughout the pack, so kind of recognizing what position you’re in and when you do have an opportunity to move forward, whether it’s high risk or low risk, or if you’re in the first three or four rows, what’s your role? What are you able to do to advance yourself forward or advance the row forward? And, what’s more important? Advancing yourself forward or the row? So, I think knowing your role and where you exist on track is probably more important than it has ever been for a driver.”

YOU CAN SEE THE CUT LINE FROM WHERE YOU ARE. THIS ROUND FEELS LIKE TWO WILD CARDS AND KANSAS. IS THAT THE PLACE WHERE YOU HAVE TO MAKE A BIG MOVE? “Yes and no. I think Kansas is fairly straight up. If we show up there and have speed and execute well, that’s something that we can control and if we’re able to control that there better than other places or not, it’s kind of hard to say. I mean, restarts there are absolutely nuts. Just going over film and data today, that place is pretty unforgiving on restarts, so I don’t think you can take anything for granted or approach this weekend as a calm weekend. There’s a lot on the line, so from that standpoint I kind of approach all three of them the same.”

DO YOU HAVE TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS AT KANSAS BEFORE YOU MAP OUT A GAME PLAN FOR TALLADEGA AND THEN THE ROVAL? “Yeah, I don’t really view those two differently. If I have a good weekend or a bad weekend this weekend, my job still kind of remains the same. I really do feel like other than a race win, I think we’re obviously more than capable of pointing our way in with where we sit now. I don’t really approach those two races any differently than I would Kansas.”

YOU ARE THE CONSISTENCY GUY, BUT TO GET TO THIS POINT SOME OF THOSE BIGGER TRACKS YOU GUYS HAVE STRUGGLED WITH. DO YOU HAVE A PLAN B AT THIS POINT ON TRACKS LIKE TALLADEGA? “It’s hard to say. Obviously, from a results standpoint it’s certainly been a challenge to finish races out on the speedways as it is for most, but I feel pretty confident in our speedway program and honestly Michigan was probably one of our best intermediates in a while. I just plugged the fence pretty early on, so I think from maybe on the surface this round could be a challenge or those races could be a challenge, I don’t know, it’s hard to say, but I feel good about it, so I’m not overly concerned from that standpoint. I feel like there’s a lot of challenges with a place like Talladega that are somewhat out of your control and some are very much in your control. Like you said, the one thing that we’ve had at all of those tracks is we’ve had speed in our cars. That certainly makes my job easier as a driver.”

IS THERE A POINT IN A RACE WEEKEND WHERE YOU REALIZE YOU MAY NOT HAVE A WINNING CAR AND CHANGING YOUR STRATEGY TO GET THE BEST FINISH YOU CAN? “I think you just defined my tone for the first two rounds of the playoffs, which is, for me and my team, it’s race within our limits. If that’s going out and trying to win a race, I don’t know how many laps we led at Atlanta, but that was a race that winning was within our limits. Winning was in the cards for us with the pace that we had, with the race-ablility that we had, whereas maybe Bristol a top 10 was gonna be the best we could, but we didn’t qualify very well, so having a solid effort was all we needed to do there, especially from a points standpoint, so I think that all falls in the category of racing within your own limits, not trying to do anything overly special just because it’s the playoffs. We got here for a reason and we’ve been doing things a certain way for I don’t know how many weeks it’s been since February, but I think it’s only a detriment to you and your team if you try and do things differently now.”

YOUR AVERAGE FINISH AT KANSAS IN THE NEXT GEN ERA IS NOT THAT GREAT. HOW DO YOU TURN THAT AROUND THIS WEEKEND? “Like I said earlier, I think it’s gonna be a great gauge for us on where we’re at from a performance standpoint at tracks like that. It’s a track that I feel good about personally. I couldn’t have told you my average finish there, but it doesn’t sound fantastic finishing second to dead last in the spring. That doesn’t help any of that. Before then, we qualified in the top 10 and ran inside of the top 15 all day. Nothing spectacular, but I wouldn’t say it’s a horrendous track for us, but we certainly haven’t had cars in Victory Lane there and that’s the goal, so, like I said before, we’ll put our best foot forward and see what we’ve got and hopefully it’s something we can contend with this weekend.”

HAVE YOU PINPOINTED ANYTHING YOU CAN IMPROVE ON THIS TIME AROUND? “Well, not getting wrecked I think falls in that category. Past that, I feel like I could give you a million driver excuses of certain things I could have done better or whatever else, but it’s certainly been progress since we’ve started with the car. I’ve definitely learned a lot. It’s a place I feel like it’s a really smooth racetrack and I feel like there are some teams that have very strong weekends at tracks like that, kind of like a Michigan where you see cars like maybe the 17 or the 19. Those guys seem to run really well at Michigan and Kansas. I feel like those two are interchangeable, so cars that you see run well at Michigan could probably run well at Kansas. I don’t know if that answers your question or not, but I’m gonna try and just worry about us.”

Michael McDowell and the No. 34 Horizon Hobby Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Kansas Speedway Competition Notes

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (September 25, 2024) – Michael McDowell and the No. 34 team are back in the Heartland this weekend to take on the Kansas Speedway.

McDowell returns to Kansas after an 11th-place run at the Bristol Night Race and is looking to improve on his Top-10 finish from the Kansas spring race earlier this year. His 10th-place result was his best career-finish at the 1.5-mile Speedway.

Horizon Hobby is back on the No. 34 this weekend, highlighting over 50 local hobby stores across the country, on the hood of the Ford Mustang Dark Horse. By forging strong relationships with RC hobby enthusiasts, retailers, and manufacturers around the world, Horizon Hobby has built the best brands in the industry.

Track activity for the NASCAR Cup Series will start Saturday, September 28th with practice and qualifying at 1:00 pm ET on the NBC Sports App. The 400-mile race will be Sunday, September 29th at 3:00 pm ET. Fans can watch the action live on the USA Network or listen via the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM channel 90.

No. 34 Horizon Hobby Ford Mustang Dark Horse:

DRIVER MICHAEL MCDOWELL:

“Kansas has been better for us lately, especially with our Top-10 in the spring and the consistent qualifying efforts we’ve had. Given the different track conditions there, we know what changes to make in order to capitalize on a great finish. It’s a challenging track, but we’ll work hard to be ready with our Horizon Hobby Ford Mustang Dark Horse.”

CREW CHIEF TRAVIS PETERSON:

“We want to improve on our Top-10 finish in the spring. We’ve run well at all these different tracks, but are making gains with our mile and a half program. I think with the good practice and qualifying efforts we’ve had this season, we definitely have the speed to run up front this weekend.”

ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS

Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The team is the 2021 Daytona 500 and 2022 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champions. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series team from its Mooresville, N.C. headquarters. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on social media: Twitter at @Team_FRM, Instagram at @team_frm and Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.

This Week in Motorsports: September 23 – 29, 2024

NCS/NXS/NCTS/ARCA: Kansas Speedway – Sept. 27-29
NHRA: World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway – Sept. 27-29

PLANO, Texas (Sept. 25, 2024) – NASCAR returns to Kansas Speedway for the second time this season, with yet another busy weekend with four races in three days. The Cup Series begins its Round of 12 on Sunday, the Xfinity Series begins its Playoffs on Saturday and the Truck Series has its Round of 10 cutoff race. The ARCA Menards Series will compete in Kansas on Friday for their penultimate race of 2024.

The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series holds the third race of its Countdown to the Championship at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, just outside of St. Louis.

NASCAR National Series – NCS | NXS | NCTS

Three Camry XSEs advance to Round of 12 … After Bristol, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Denny Hamlin advanced to the Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 12. All three begin the Round of 12 above the cutline, with Bell 24 points above, Reddick 20 points up and Hamlin seven points to the good.

Jimmie Johnson back in action … Jimmie Johnson is back in the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE this weekend at Kansas Speedway. This is the seven-time champion’s first start since Indianapolis in July and the 696th start of his historic career. Johnson has made 30 previous starts at Kansas, with three wins, nine top-fives and 19 top-10s to his name.

Bell seeks another Kansas pole … Bell and his No. 20 Camry XSE team have been exceptional in qualifying at Kansas of late. The Oklahoma native has captured two consecutive poles at Kansas, including three in the last five races. He also has five top-10 finishes in the last six races at the 1.5-mile oval coming into the weekend.

Smith, Creed begin Playoff push … With the Xfinity Series Playoffs beginning this weekend, Chandler Smith and Sheldon Creed begin their quests for a championship. Smith begins the Playoffs as the No. 4 seed – 17 points above the cutline, while Creed is ninth, three points below to start. Creed is also on a hot streak of late, with a top-10 finish in seven of the last eight, and a top-five finish in six of those races.

Toyota seeks another Xfinity win at Kansas … Toyota has been strong at Kansas Speedway in the Xfinity Series of late, capturing five wins in the last seven races, with the most recent being John Hunter Nemechek last fall, where Creed also finished third. Kansas has been a favorable spot for Toyota over time, as the manufacturer also won five consecutive races from 2013-2017.

Heim, Gray in good spots for Playoff cutoff … With the Truck Series paring down to its Round of 8 after this weekend, Corey Heim and Taylor Gray are currently in good positions. Heim has already locked himself into the next round, and Gray finds himself 23 points above the cutline. Heim and Gray will also compete in two races over the weekend as they are both entered in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Kansas on Saturday. Heim will make his 12th Xfinity Series start of the season aboard the Sam Hunt Racing No, 26 GR Supra, after finishing fifth in his last attempt at Atlanta earlier this month. Gray, who has earned top-10s in two of his last three Xfinity Series attempts, will make his 11th career start with Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 19.

Heim goes for Kansas sweep … After a dominating win in the spring, Heim returns to Kansas Speedway looking for a season sweep and his sixth win of the season. Heim led 79 of the 134 laps in the spring race on his way to victory. He also has four consecutive Kansas top-10s heading into the weekend, highlighting his prowess around the 1.5-mile oval.

Butterbean returns to TRICON Garage … Brenden “Butterbean” Queen is back behind the wheel of the No. 1 Tundra TRD Pro for TRICON Garage this weekend at Kansas. Queen is making his third start of the season for TRICON Garage, his first since Nashville in June. In his maiden start this season, Queen finished fourth at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

NASCAR Regional Series – ARCA Menards Series

Tanner Gray does double duty … Like he did in the spring, Tanner Gray will run both the ARCA Menards Series race and Truck Series race this weekend in Kansas. Gray sat on pole for the ARCA race in May, finishing second, and then finished seventh in the Truck Series race that same night. Gray has two ARCA poles in his career at Kansas and has finished inside the top-10 in each of his three starts.

Breidinger returns to favorable Kansas … Toni Breidinger has had a run of success at Kansas Speedway of late, finishing inside the top-11 in her last five ARCA Menards Series races there, including coming off a 10th-place finish in May. Breidinger has also only finished outside the top-12 in just one of her seven starts at Kansas so far, with a track-best and career-best finish of third in 2023.

NHRA – Top Fuel | Funny Car

Brown seeks three wins in a row … Antron Brown is on a roll to start the Countdown to the Championship, winning the first two races at Maple Grove Raceway and zMAX Dragway in Charlotte. He comes to World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway with the Top Fuel points lead over Justin Ashley (second), Shawn Langdon (third) and Doug Kalitta (fourth). Steve Torrence holds the sixth position in the points, while his father, Billy, is 10th. In Funny Car, Ron Capps is fifth, J.R. Todd is sixth and Alexis DeJoria is seventh in the current points standings.

Toyota streaks roll into St. Louis … With Brown’s triumph at Charlotte, Toyota continues its amazing streaks in NHRA competition. Brown’s win gave Toyota its 15th Top Fuel win in the last 17 NHRA races and its 39th consecutive final round appearance in either Top Fuel and/or Funny Car.

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.

RYAN PREECE
Kansas Advance
No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Event Overview

● Event: Hollywood Casino 400 (Round 30 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Sept. 29
● Location: Kansas Speedway in Kansas City
● Layout: 1.5-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 267 laps/400.5 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 80 laps / Stage 2: 85 laps / Final Stage: 102 laps
● TV/Radio: USA / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Notes of Interest

● Ryan Preece and the No. 41 HaasTooling.com team of Stewart-Haas Racing look to continue their recent stretch of consistency when they visit Kansas Speedway in Kansas City for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 NASCAR Cup Series race. They’re coming off a strong seventh-place finish in the annual Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, which was Preece’s second top-10 in a row and fourth of the season. Preece was also the top-finishing Stewart-Haas driver for the third time in the last six races with his fourth consecutive result of 18th or better. He finished 12th Sept. 1 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, 18th Sept. 8 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and ninth Sept. 15 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International before his seventh-place run last Saturday at Bristol.

● Sunday’s 267-lap race will mark Preece’s 10th NASCAR Cup Series start at Kansas and his fourth for Stewart-Haas. Best among his previous Kansas outings was his 12th-place finish from the 28th starting position in October 2019 for JTG Daugherty Racing. Preece’s best Kansas outing for Stewart-Haas came in September 2023, which he also started 28th and drove to an 18th-place finish.

● Preece has three starts outside of the NASCAR Cup Series at Kansas, two in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and one in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. His lone Truck Series start at Kansas resulted in a third-place finish from the seventh starting position with David Gilliland Racing in September 2022. Preece’s most recent Xfinity Series outing at Kansas in October 2018 was the most promising. He started seventh in his Joe Gibbs Racing entry and charged into the top-five early in the race, finishing third in the opening stage. But a multicar accident on lap 91 of the 200-lap race took him out of contention, leaving him to salvage only a 21st-place finish.

● Riding along with Preece in the Hollywood Casino 400 is Sherry Pollex. Via a decal over the passenger-side window of Preece’s No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Pollex’s valiant, nine-year battle with ovarian cancer is being highlighted by the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation’s and the NASCAR Foundation’s Honor a Cancer Hero program. Pollex passed away on Sept. 17, 2023, and throughout her cancer journey, she supported many causes related to childhood and ovarian cancers. Pollex founded the Sherry Strong Integrative Medicine Oncology Clinic at Novant Health in Charlotte, North Carolina, and created SherryStrong.org to help women understand early detection and treatment options for ovarian cancer. Pollex was nominated for the Honor a Cancer Hero program by Jerrod Deitchler.

● Joining Preece and the No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse at Kansas is HaasTooling.com, the cutting tool division of Haas Automation. HaasTooling.com allows CNC machinists to purchase high-quality cutting tools at great prices. Haas cutting tools are sold exclusively online at HaasTooling.com and shipped directly to end users. Haas Automation, founded in 1983, is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. The company manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers, rotaries and indexers, and automation solutions.

Ryan Preece, Driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse

You’ve had some solid runs on intermediate-style tracks the latter half of the season, highlighted by your fourth-place result at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway the last weekend in June. How do you feel that trend bodes for your efforts at Kansas this weekend?

“For us, we’ve been getting a lot better on the mile-and-a-halves and making some gains there. So as long as we can continue down that path and really just work on our short-run speed, I think that’ll be the difference in really changing how we run. But Kansas is also a track that you need to be able to have a good car that’ll run the top and keep running and be fast. So, yeah, I feel pretty optimistic that we’re heading down that path. We need to continue focusing on consistency, getting the most out of practice and qualifying, and running well during the race. That means I’ve got to be on it, we’ve got to be on it with strategy and on pit road. All of it is coming together and, even though all of the results don’t show it, we’re getting there. This team is working really hard on putting it all together and capitalizing on that. If we’re able to be consistent all the way through to the end of the year, those better results will keep coming.”

What are the particular challenges when it comes to putting together a complete race at Kansas relative to the other intermediate-style tracks?

“Kansas is totally different from the others just because the outside is the dominant lane. You need to be able to move around and go where they can’t to have a good run there. Usually, Kansas is a track where you fight loose. The wind can be totally different going into one corner versus the other, so you’ve got to have a good balance between the two. And, as seems to be the case everywhere we go, track position is going to be the big thing. Our team has been working hard on finding the right balance at these tracks. We’re going to really emphasize qualifying and getting a good starting position. It’s all about track position, it’s the biggest thing at these tracks. We’ve seen it all season long, right? If you have the track position, it could be a good day, so that’s what we need to do. If we can get a good starting position and execute on the track, I think we can put ourselves in a good spot at the end.”

Is there anything you can bring to this weekend’s race from your time in May at Kansas?

“Conditions can usually be very different from the first to the second time we go there. It was on the cooler side there for the spring race and it’s supposed to be warmer but not too hot this weekend, so we’ll just have to see how that plays out. It’s all about what the racetrack gives us on Sunday.”

You’re down to your final seven races with Stewart-Haas. What’s your mindset as you close out your run with the organization?

“It’s no different than it always has been. That never changes for me. My mindset is getting out there every weekend and executing to win races. That’s why we’re all here, right? To win. To show that we belong in this series. I’ve fought way too hard to be here for that not to be the goal, and I know that everyone on my team feels the same way. I’m thankful to be here and be racing, and I know what we’re capable of. We’ve been focused on consistency throughout the entire season. That doesn’t stop now just because we aren’t fighting for a championship. We’re fighting for wins every weekend and I believe if we keep growing as a team down to the very end, we’re going to keep getting those top-10s and keep getting better.”

No. 41 HaasTooling.com Team Roster

Primary Team Members

Driver: Ryan Preece

Hometown: Berlin, Connecticut

Crew Chief: Chad Johnston

Hometown: Cayuga, Indiana

Car Chief: Jeremy West

Hometown: Gardena, California

Engineer: Marc Hendricksen

Hometown: Clinton, New Jersey

Spotter: Tony Raines

Hometown: LaPorte, Indiana

Over-The-Wall Members

Front Tire Changer: Devin Lester

Hometown: Bluefield, West Virginia

Rear Tire Changer: Austin Chrismon

Hometown: China Grove, North Carolina

Tire Carrier: Chad Emmons

Hometown: Tyler, Texas

Jack Man: Sherman Timbs

Hometown: Indianola, Mississippi

Fuel Man: Dwayne Moore

Hometown: Griffin, Georgia

Road Crew Members

Front End Mechanic: Joe Zanolini

Hometown: Sybertsville, Pennsylvania

Interior Mechanic: Robert Dalby

Hometown: Anaheim, California

Tire Specialist: Matt Ridgeway

Hometown: Carrollton, Georgia

Engine Tuner: Jimmy Fife

Hometown: Orange County, California

Transporter Co-Driver: David Rodrigues

Hometown: Santa Clarita, California

Transporter Co-Driver: Charlie Schleyer

Hometown: Youngsville, Pennsylvania

CLUB ENTRY LIST

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
POINT STANDINGS: 34TH

ERIK JONES
POINT STANDINGS: 30TH

JIMMIE JOHNSON

CLUB NOTES

Kansas 1 Recap: John Hunter Nemechek rolled off the grid in 29th-place for the AdventHealth 400. By the time the first pit cycle started, Nemechek found himself up to 13th. A few pit road penalties (lap 83 and 181) set the North Carolina native back in the running order, but he kept fighting back and scored a 13th-place finish.

Erik Jones was sidelined for the first Kansas race in 2024 after recovering from an injury that was sustained at Talladega Superspeedway. Corey Heim stepped into the No. 43 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry XSE in Jones’ absence. Heim stayed level throughout the day as he had his second ever NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) start. Heim brought the famed No. 43 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry XSE home clean in 22nd-place.

Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion, Jimmie Johnson was behind the wheel of the No. 84 AdventHealth Toyota Camry XSE for his fourth of nine races in the 2024 season. After qualifying in the 19th position, Johnson started the race handling super tight and fell back to 30th in the running order. After some adjustments to the AdventHealth Toyota Camry XSE, Johnson was starting to work his way forward. At the green flag on Lap 173 Johnson vied for position with three and four wide racing and was hit from behind on Lap 176, spinning into the infield grass, causing heavy damage to the No. 84 AdventHealth Toyota. Johnson and the No. 84 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB team retired for the day with a 38th place finish.

EJ Stats: From 14 starts at Kansas Speedway, Jones has earned six top-10s and four top-fives, his best finish being 3rd in both the spring race of 2019 and the fall race of 2023. Due to an injury at Talladega in the spring of this year, Jones did not race at Kansas Speedway. He hopes to return at the track to mimic the outcome from the fall race of 2023.

Elenz Stats: Dave Elenz has had five starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Kansas Speedway, four of those with Erik Jones and one with Corey Heim in the spring of this year. Earning a pole position with then Xfinity driver Noah Gragson in 2020, Elenz has an average finish of 18 in the Xfinity series, with two top-fives. The Jones and Elenz duo will team up for the first time at Kansas this year on Sunday, September 29th.

JHN Stats: John Hunter Nemechek has two victories in three attempts at Kansas Speedway in the Xfinity Series. Nemechek has an average start of 11.7 and an average finish of 3.3. Nemechek has never finished outside of the top-10 in the Xfinity Series at Kansas, leading for 218 laps. In the NASCAR Cup Series, Nemechek has three starts, with his best finish of 13th this past Spring.

Beshore Stats: Ben Beshore, the crew chief on the No. 42 Pye-Barker Fire & Safety Toyota Camry XSE has five NASCAR Cup Series races under his belt. In 2021 he visited Victory Lane while at Joe Gibbs Racing with Kyle Busch behind the wheel. The duo followed that up in 2022 with a third-place finish. Last year in the NASCAR Xfinity Series that success translated over to John Hunter Nemechek, as the pair visited Victory Lane together.

JJ Stats: Johnson is one of five drivers to have won three Cup races (2008, 2011, 2015) and this is the only track for his limited racing schedule that he will compete at twice in the same season. Johnson has 30 starts at Kansas Speedway with three wins, nine top-five and 19 top-10 finishes. He has led 601 laps around the venue and is looking to break the record for most wins at the track this weekend.

Crew Chief CLUB: Gene Wachtel will be making his crew chief debut this weekend for the No. 84 Dollar Tree Family Dollar Toyota Camry XSE driven by Jimmie Johnson. Wachtel holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Early in his career, he gained experience at Dodge Motorsports, Hendrick Motorsports, and Stewart Hass Racing, focusing on design engineering, data acquisition, 7-post rig testing, and simulation. Gene provided simulation support as a contractor for GM Racing through Performance Concepts of the Carolinas. He later joined Joe Gibbs Racing as a race engineer, further honing his skills. His career continued to evolve at Pratt & Miller, where he developed data analytics strategies and software utilizing track data to extract performance. Currently, he serves as the Performance Director for LEGACY M.C., managing simulation tool sets to optimize vehicle performance.

Great Sports Legend Honoree: Jimmie Johnson is going to be crowned in the 2024 class of “Great Sports Legends” at the 39th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner to benefit The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis on Monday evening, September 30th, 2024 at the New York Hilton Midtown. Johnson is in elite company as the 2024 honorees include: Roger Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champion; Tony Gonzalez, NFL Hall of Fame tight end; Gary Payton, NBA Champion and Basketball Hall of Famer; Henrik Lundqvist, NHL Hall of Famer and Vezina Trophy winner; Kerri Walsh Jennings three-time Olympic Beach Volleyball Gold Medalist and three-time World Champion; Arantxa Sanchez Vicario International Tennis Hall of Famer and 14-time Grand Slam Champion; Tamika Catchings, Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer and four-time Olympic Gold Medalist; and Johnny Velazquez, a three-time Kentucky Derby winner and National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame member.

JJ on Today Show: Johnson will be a guest in the third hour of NBC’s Today Show on Monday, Sept. 30th to talk about the Great Sports Legends honor as well as the 2024 racing season.

3 Reasons to Race: The Erik Jones Foundation (EJF) is hosting a fundraiser and online auction on the evening of September 24 in Michigan, known as “3 Reasons to Race”. Attendees will enjoy a fun event with live music, a quarter midget race, and much more. All proceeds benefit the three pillars of the Erik Jones Foundation: children’s literacy, early cancer detection and awareness, and promoting animal welfare. To bid on auction items and for more information visit: Three Reasons to Race Fundraiser & ONLINE AUCTION – Erik Jones Foundation

Appearances: Erik Jones and Jimmie Johnson will make an appearance at the Union Adventist University in Lincoln, Nebraska on Friday, Sept. 27th in partnership with AdventHealth. There will be an autograph session alongside a panel for a Q&A style interview regarding the NASCAR partnership.

John Hunter Nemechek has a host of appearances this weekend. On Sunday, he will be signing autographs at the LEGACY MOTOR CLUB merchandise rig located in the Fan Zone at 10:00 a.m. He will have two question and answer sessions, one at Toyota Racing Experience at 10:30 a.m., again located in the Fan Zone then he will go inside the track to the Cabo Wabo Fan Stage at 10:55 a.m.

CHOPT Gives Campaign: Chopt Creative Salad Co. has teamed up with seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson to give back to schools across the country. By ordering one special salad off of their limited-time menu, fans can change a student’s life for the better. From now until October 9, if you order the “Jimmie Johnson Kale Caesar Salad” Chopt will donate 15% of sales to the Jimmie Johnson Foundation (JJF). Fans can also enter to win a VIP race experience, including travel, lodging and VIP passes for two to the race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 13.

Honor A Cancer Hero: This weekend at Kansas Speedway, the fifth annual Honor A Cancer Hero (HACH) program will commence. The three LEGACY MOTOR CLUB entries of No. 42, No. 43, and No. 84 will carry the names of individual on the car doors. Bob Perry and Tom Goddard will be riding along on the No. 42 Pye-Barker entry driven by John Hunter Nemechek. David Weinrach will be on the No. 43 AdventHealth Toyota Camry driven by Erik Jones and Jimmie Johnson in the No. 84 Dollar Tree / Family Dollar has the name of Marlin Bitz. On behalf of AdventHealth, the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation (MTJF), and The NASCAR Foundation, the campaign aims to raise funds to help women, children, and their family’s battling cancer. Since its inception in 2020, MTJF has raised over $400,000.

There’s No Place Like Home: Director of Pit Operations Chris Hall is a native of Springfield, Mo., and Kansas Speedway is his home track. Hall returns to the track that he called “The Motherland”.

Prince Promoted: Sydney Prince will serve as the lead/primary engineer on the No. 84 Dollar Tree / Family Dollar Toyota Camry this weekend in Kansas. Prince is 24 years old and a graduate of the University of North Carolina Charlotte in 2022 with a degree in mechanical engineering. She interned at Spire Motorsports and then landed a position at then-Petty GMS, serving as a quality control engineer. She was promoted in 2023 to engineer on the Truck Series No. 24 entry with driver Rajah Caruth. Prince moved up to the No. 84 Cup team this season as a second engineer for the first five events of Johnson’s schedule. This weekend marks the first race for Prince as the lead engineer heading into Kansas Speedway.

New Partner: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB today announced a partnership with DriveValue.com, powered by the Exit Planning Institute (EPI), to serve as the primary partner on the No. 42 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Toyota Camry XSE. The partnership with LEGACY MOTOR CLUB will prominently feature the DriveValue.com brand/marks on the No. 42 Toyota Camry XSE driven by John Hunter Nemechek at Nashville Superspeedway on June 1, 2025.

Going for GO.L.D.: Partners Dollar Tree Family Dollar has a “Go for G.O.L.D.” (Grand Opening Look Daily) progr. am. Each week throughout the season, the No. 42 and No. 43 will feature one of the local store on the decklid of the Toyota Camry XSE.

CLUB QUOTES

John Hunter Nemechek, Driver of the No. 42 Pye-Barker Toyota Camry XSE:

“Unfortunately, we’ve had a rough second half of the season, but Kansas [Speedway] is definitely a place that we can turn it around. Earlier this year we had a solid No. 42 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Toyota Camry XSE; we were able to overcome a couple mistakes and work our way back up for a solid finish. Kansas is one of my favorite tracks – I have a win in both the NASCAR Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series, it would be awesome to complete the trifecta. We just need to minimize any mistakes and run like we know we can.”

Ben Beshore, Crew chief of the No. 42 Pye-Barker Toyota Camry XSE:

“Hopefully we can build off the speed we had late in the race at Kansas in the spring. John Hunter [Nemechek] has had a lot of success [at Kansas Speedway] and he knows what it takes to make speed here. When the groove moves to the top that is where he can really push the car to make speed. Kansas normally comes down to a late restart and since the track widens out it makes for an exciting finish because you can be 3 or 4 wide at times.”

Erik Jones, Driver of the No. 43 AdventHealth Toyota Camry XSE:

“Kansas has been historically one of my better tracks over the last handful of years, especially with the NextGen car. I thought Corey in the spring looked pretty strong. They had a handful of issues that held them back from a better finish, but the No. 42 was good, the No. 84 was strong before they got caught up in a wreck. I thought we had three good cars there in the spring, so hopefully we will have a similar thing going back and have some good speed. I really enjoy racing at Kansas, we had an opportunity to win there in the fall last year, came up just a bit short. Hopefully have a similar one this year and can go out and give ourselves a good finish.”

Dave Elenz, Crew chief of the No. 43 AdventHealth Toyota Camry XSE:

“With Corey in the car in the spring, it’s obviously a little bit different for us, but he did a good job – had a really good day with him that could’ve been better. We had a very good car on the long run and can take some notes from that and then try to get a balance that we can run on restarts in shorter and make it better in traffic with him, so I think it will be as useful as any form of race, even with Corey being in the car.

The spring race was pretty cool. It will be a little bit different of a race. We will be to the top quicker and more dominant to the top side. Qualifying is going to be a little different – they were wide open on the throttle in the spring , we will probably be lifting a little bit. Other than that, the race should play out pretty similar, with a fixation on the top side.

As far as last year’s strategy, it should be pretty similar to what we had last year. Tires and cars are close to the same rules package, so you should have an opportunity to take right sides towards the end of the race or towards the stage break and try to get some track position. It always makes it a little more fun when you have an option to do some strategy to get to the front. So, look forward to it.”

Jimmie Johnson, Driver of the No. 84 Dollar Tree / Family Dollar Toyota Camry XSE:

“It’s been a few weeks since I have been behind the wheel of a NASCAR vehicle so I’m ready to get back to work. Having Gene on board as crew chief will be great for our team, as he has great experience on the engineering side. We had a great run going at Kansas in the spring, and our day got cut short so my goal is to pick up where we left off and put together a competitive race for the No. 84 team.”

Gene Wachtel, Crew chief of the No. 84 Dollar Tree / Family Dollar Toyota Camry XSE

“I’m excited to work with Jimmie and the 84 crew this weekend in Kansas. I had a very small role as Jimmie’s data engineer during his first championship season and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to come full circle and lead the 84 team this weekend at Kansas.”

PETTY 75TH ANNIVERSARY

ABOUT PETTY 75th: The 2024 season marks a significant milestone in the history of the Petty family as they have helped define stock car racing for 75 years. Their commitment to the sport and the people who make it possible – behind the wheel, under the hood, in the back office, and beyond – has shaped the growth and success of NASCAR. Their LEGACY lives on with the countless fans, drivers, technicians, and team members they touched. Throughout 2024, LEGACY M.C. will celebrate the Petty family and share countless memories with friends and fans at racetracks across the country.

Petty History: Adam Petty visited Victory Lane at Kansas Speedway during ARCA Series’ Kansas City Excitement 300 on June 27, 1998. LEGACY M.C. co-owner, Jimmie Johnson finished runner-up to Petty on that day.

The King’s Hat: A brand-new King’s Hat design will be revealed this weekend at Kansas Speedway. The King’s Hat will be located at the base of the Wyandotte Suite Tower and available for fans to take their picture with it all weekend. Be sure to check out Kansas Speedway’s social media handles for any additional plan activities throughout the weekend.

BROADCAST INFO

KANSAS SPEEDWAY

SUNDAY, SEPT. 29 @ 3:00 PM ET

ABOUT OUR PARTNERS

ABOUT DOLLAR TREE, INC.: Dollar Tree, a Fortune 200 Company, operated 16,622 stores across 48 states and five Canadian provinces as of October 28, 2023. Stores operate under the brands of Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree Canada. To learn more about the Company, visit www.DollarTree.com.

ABOUT PYE-BARKER FIRE & SAFETY: The U.S. leader in fully integrated life safety systems, Pye-Barker Fire & Safety provides complete fire protection and security systems nationwide. With over 200 locations and 6,000 team members nationwide, Pye-Barker is an industry leader and ranks No. 954 on the Inc 5000 and No. 9 on the SDM 100.

ABOUT LEGACY MOTOR CLUB: LEGACY MOTOR CLUB™ is a professional auto racing club owned by businessman and entrepreneur Maurice “Maury” J. Gallagher and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson. The CLUB competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series fielding the No. 42 Toyota Camry XSE of John Hunter Nemechek, the No. 43 Toyota Camry XSE of Erik Jones, and the No. 84 limited schedule entry for Johnson. LEGACY M.C. also competes in the Extreme E Series. Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty “The King” serves as CLUB Ambassador. With a unique title signifying a nod to car clubs of past eras, LEGACY M.C. is an inclusive club for all motorsport enthusiasts to celebrate the past and future legacies of its members, while competing for wins and championships at NASCAR’s elite level. To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and exclusive content, follow LEGACY MOTOR CLUB™ on Facebook, X, Instagram and at www.LEGACYMOTORCLUB.com.

Todd Gilliland and the No. 38 Rasmussen Air & Gas Energy Ford Mustang Dark Horse
Kansas Speedway Competition Notes

 MOORESVILLE, N.C. (September 24, 2024) – Todd Gilliland is back in action this weekend as the NASCAR Cup Series returns to the Kansas Speedway.

Following a 32nd place finish at the Bristol Motor Speedway, Gilliland and the team look to regain their momentum at the 1.5-mile oval. Quincy Compressor returns with Front Row Motorsports and Gilliland for the event and will bring along their partner, Rasmussen Air & Gas Energy for the 400-mile event. Alongside their partners, Quincy Compressor and Chicago Pneumatic, Rasmussen Air & Gas Energy is excited to enter the NASCAR world.

Founded on March 1, 2013, Rasmussen Air & Gas Energy (RAGE) has quickly established itself as a leading provider of compressed air and gas systems in the U.S. The acronym “RAGE” reflects their focus on air, gas, and energy.

Specializing in systems ranging from fractional horsepower to 5,000 horsepower, RAGE offers tailored solutions backed by a top-notch technical service team. Their commitment to an add-value mentality and innovative culture ensures that they meet the unique challenges faced by their clients across various sectors, including food and beverage, healthcare, and manufacturing.

RAGE pride’s themselves on being your trusted partner for optimized productivity and efficiency. For more information, visit rage-energy.com.

Track activity for the NASCAR Cup Series will start Saturday, September 28th with practice and qualifying at 1:00 pm ET. The 267-lap event is scheduled for Sunday, September 29th at 3:00 pm ET. Fans can watch the action live on the USA Network or listen in via the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM channel 90.

No. 38 Rasmussen Air & Gas Energy Ford Mustang Dark Horse:

DRIVER TODD GILLILAND:

“We haven’t had the best results on the mile and a half tracks, but I think that will change this weekend. Ryan (Bergenty) and the team have been hard at work ensuring we have speed and I think their hard work will pay off this weekend.

“I’m excited to partner with RAGE. They are super excited for this weekend. Hopefully I can give them a good showing.”

CREW CHIEF RYAN BERGENTY:

“We have struggled on the mile and a half tracks this year, but I think we’re in a pretty good spot heading to Kansas. Bristol didn’t go as planned, but it’s in the past. We have to keep our heads high and eyes forward as we get through this last stretch of races.”

ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS

Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The team is the 2021 Daytona 500 and 2022 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champions. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series team from its Mooresville, N.C. headquarters. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on social media: Twitter at @Team_FRM, Instagram at @team_frm and Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.