Category: NASCAR Cup PR

Straight Talk Wireless 400: Homestead-Miami Speedway
Homestead, Fla. – October 27, 2024

AUSTIN CINDRIC No. 2 FREIGHTLINER FORD MUSTANG
START: 36TH STAGE ONE: 29TH STAGE TWO: 26TH FINISH: 27TH POINTS: 11TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Austin Cindric finished 27th after enduring a challenging day in the No. 2 Freightliner Ford Mustang at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Cindric started the day from the 36th position after the car got loose during Saturday’s qualifying session but gained a few spots early on as a caution slowed the field on the opening lap. The Team Penske driver made his first trip to pit road on Lap 42 receiving four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. Following a caution a few laps later for the No. 5, Cindric stayed out and restarted third, but lost position quickly as those with fresher tires accelerated by. When the flags flew to conclude Stage 1, the 26-year-old racer was scored 29th. Over the radio, Cindric informed the Freightliner crew that the car had tightened up that run and he needed better drive off the corner. Crew chief Brian Wilson called the driver to pit road for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment under the caution. When the field went green again on Lap 88, Cindric was in the 22nd position. Over the span of the segment, the No. 2 struggled with grip and turn on exit and finished Stage 2 in the 26th position. Under the break, Wilson called the driver back to pit road for air pressure and wedge adjustments in hopes of aiding the situation. Cindric was forced to back up to depart his pit stall and lined up 28th for the restart. In the final segment, the team made slight gains with the handling of the car and the pit crew performed their final stop of the day with less than 40 laps to go. When the checkered flag flew, Cindric and the No. 2 Freightliner team crossed the line in the 27th position.

CINDRIC’S THOUGHTS: “We didn’t quite have our Freightliner Ford Mustang where we needed it to be for most phases of the weekend. I felt like we were able to improve the car throughout the race, but on top of that, it was one of those that if something would go wrong on a restart or guys would get stuck on pit road, I felt like I got promoted to the back pretty much anytime there was a caution or break. It’s definitely a hard thing to do at this track, but we have some good notes for next year.”

RYAN BLANEY No. 12 MENARDS/RICHMOND FORD MUSTANG
START: 20TH STAGE ONE: 4TH STAGE TWO: 5TH FINISH: 2ND POINTS: 7TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Ryan Blaney came up one spot short of clinching a spot in the Championship 4 to defend his 2023 Cup Series title Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. With the runner-up effort, Blaney enters the final race of the Round of 8 seventh in the playoffs standings, 38 points below the cut line. After starting 20th, the Menards/Richmond Ford made its way inside the top-10 by lap 25 before Blaney worked his way up to fifth in the running order following the first green flag pit cycle of the afternoon. Blaney ultimately came away with a fourth-place finish in the opening stage before the 12 team ripped off one of its fastest stops of the day to win the race off pit road heading into Stage 2. Blaney continued to battle for the lead during the opening run of the stage despite a tight handling condition off the exit of the corners before another quick four tire stop under green on lap 113 allowed the Menards/Richmond Mustang to cycle to the lead just 13 laps later. The tight condition persisted when Blaney was running up against the wall, resulting in a fifth-place finish in Stage 2. Blaney continued to fight for the top spot during the opening run of the final stage and eventually took the lead back with 76 laps to go with teams needing one more stop to make it to the end. The green flag pit cycle began with 50 to go before crew chief Jonathan Hassler called Blaney to pit road from the lead with 46 laps remaining and cycled to second in the running order, one spot behind the No. 45 who had yet to pit. While battling for the lead with 13 laps to go, the No. 5 forced Blaney and a lapped car three-wide in turn three, causing the No. 5 to spin above Blaney and bring out the caution. The field hit pit road one final time as the 12 team won the race off pit road yet again, setting up a restart with seven to go with Blaney lining up alongside the No. 45 that stayed out under caution with two-lap older tires. After restarting from the inside of row one, Blaney was split three wide heading into turn one but regained his momentum to get around the No. 11 and take the white flag from the lead. Blaney continued to hold the top spot down the backstretch as the No. 45 got to his bumper before making the race-winning pass from the top lane. Blaney led 47 laps in the second-place result, marking his fifth top-10 in this season’s eight playoff races.

BLANEY’S THOUGHTS: “Yeah, disappointing. I had a good shot to win it and I didn’t have a very good last lap. I thought I got into three hard and [Tyler Reddick] just went in there and it stuck for him, which is really impressive. I hate to give one away there like that. I don’t know if we gave it away. We got the lead back after losing it on the restart and just that last lap didn’t play out for us. I appreciate everybody on the 12 team for bringing a really fast race car. I had a really great shot to go to Phoenix and I still have one more chance, so we still have to look forward to that. I appreciate Menards and Ford and Ford Performance, Richmond, Advance Auto Parts, BODYARMOR, DEX Imaging and everybody. It is a shame. I will be thinking through it all night of what I should have done different, probably. That is just the way it goes but I am really proud of the effort and hopefully we can bring it to them next week.”

JOEY LOGANO No. 22 HUNT BROTHERS PIZZA FORD MUSTANG
START: 26TH STAGE ONE: 22ND STAGE TWO: 20TH FINISH: 28TH POINTS: 1ST (ADV)
RACE RUNDOWN: Joey Logano came away with a 28th-place finish Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, a week after the 22 team clinched its spot in the Championship 4 with a dramatic win at Las Vegas. Logano was forced to start at the rear of the field after replacing the steering system following qualifying Saturday as crew chief Paul Wolfe altered his strategy accordingly, opting to run long during the first green flag pit cycle in order to gain track position. Logano cycled to fourth in the running order before Wolfe called him to pit road on lap 41. The caution flew just seven laps later, prompting Wolfe to keep Logano on track with three other cars that also pitted late in the cycle. Logano took the restart from the inside of row one, but fresher tires prevailed over the final 27 laps of the stage in a 22nd-place result. Logano worked his way back towards the top-10 during the opening run of Stage 2 as the 22 team continued to work on the balance of the Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford. Logano went on to take the green-and-white checkered flag 20th in the second segment. The No. 22 continued to battle through traffic over the course of the final run of the afternoon, but the green flag pit cycle trapped Logano a lap down before the caution flag flew with 13 to go, allowing him to take the wave around under yellow to get back on the lead lap for the final restart of the day. Logano went on to take the checkered flag 28th in the final intermediate track event of the 2024 season.

LOGANO’S THOUGHTS: “Hard-fought day for our Hunt Brothers Pizza team. Starting at the back forced us to rely heavily on strategy from the start in order to make back some track position but it didn’t quite fall our way. Hopefully we can build some momentum in Martinsville before heading to Phoenix to race for a championship.”

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Martinsville Speedway for the Round of 8 finale on Sunday, November 3. Coverage of the XFINITY 500 begins at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Keselowski Finishes 17th

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (Oct. 27, 2024) – Chris Buescher overcame starting from the rear to earn a top-15 finish Sunday afternoon in the Fastenal Ford at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Teammate Brad Keselowski finished 17th in the Consumer Cellular Mustang.

An issue in the steering wrack on Saturday meant the No. 17 team was forced to replace it following the qualifying session. That change sent Buescher to the tail of the field to start Sunday afternoon’s 400-mile race, while Keselowski qualified 18th.

6 Recap
The No. 6 worked into the top-15 within the first five laps after the first caution of the day came just a lap in, forcing an early restart. The race’s first green-flag pit cycle began around lap 35 but Keselowski remained on track, inheriting the lead at lap 34. He led for eight laps before pitting at lap 40.

A caution flew just a handful of laps later when Keselowski pitted again, this time for scuff tires, restarting 26th. He went on to end the opening stage of 80 laps in 32nd.

The No. 6 team employed the same strategy from stage one to stage two as Keselowski remained on track through most of another green-flag cycle, eventually hitting pit road from P2 at lap 125. He went on to finish that stage in 27th.

From there, Keselowski restarted 24th to begin the third stage, then slowly worked his way back to the top-15. He hit pit road again under green at lap 217 from 14th, and held that position when the caution flew for the final time with 12 laps remaining. He went on to cross the line 17th.

17 Recap
Buescher battled back not once, but twice in the track position game in Sunday’s 267-lap race. His first pit stop of the afternoon came at lap 35 as he hit pit road from P12. He was 25th on a restart at lap 53, but powered to 21st to end the stage.

Then, under the stage break, Buescher was headed for service on his Ford Mustang, but contact from behind spun him backwards into the pit stall. That mishap put him 34th on the ensuing restart, meaning he needed to again regain much of the track position.

He was 25th by the end of stage two, and restarted 22nd for stage three. He hit pit road under green at lap 216 from 17th, and was up to 15th by the final caution at lap 255. From there he restarted 16th, but battled to P15 to end it.

Up Next
Martinsville Speedway hosts the Cup Series in the final race in the Round of 8 next weekend. Race coverage Sunday is set for 2 p.m. ET on NBC, with radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

About RFK Racing
RFK Racing, in its 37th season in 2024, features an ownership lineup pairing one of the sport’s most iconic names, Jack Roush, along with NASCAR Champion, Brad Keselowski, and Fenway Sports Group owner John Henry. Roush initially founded the team in 1988 and it has since become one of the most successful racing operations in the world, propelling him to be the first NASCAR owner to amass three hundred wins and capturing eight championships, including back-to-back NASCAR Cup titles in 2003 and 2004. Keselowski, a former owner in the NASCAR Truck Series, is the 2012 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. In 2007, Roush partnered with Henry, who also owns Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox, English Premier League’s Liverpool F.C., and the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins, to form Roush Fenway Racing. Off the track, RFK is a leader and proven winner in NASCAR marketing solutions, having produced multiple award-winning social media, digital content and experiential marketing campaigns. Visit rfkracing.com, and follow the team on all social platforms @rfkracing.

TYLER REDDICK PUNCHES TICKET TO CHAMPIONSHIP 4 WITH WIN AT HOMESTEAD
Reddick make his first career Championship 4 appearance at Phoenix

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (October 27, 2024) – With an incredible move in the final two corners on the final lap, Tyler Reddick captured victory Sunday afternoon at Homestead-Miami Speedway to secure his spot in the Cup Series Championship 4 for the first time in his career and the first title race appearance for 23XI Racing. The win is Reddick’s third in the 2024 season, tying a career-best, and the eighth of his Cup Series career.

Reddick started from the pole position and was the dominant car in Stage 1, leading 57 laps and claiming the stage victory. The No. 45 Camry XSE stayed in contention throughout Sunday afternoon but had to revert to running long in the final pit cycle in hopes of catching a late caution to be in the catbirds seat for a victory. That yellow came just laps after Reddick made his final pit stop, putting him to the lead while others pitted. He lost the lead on the initial restart but passed the cars in front, including in turns 3 and 4 on the final lap, to take the checkered flag and clinch himself to the championship race in two weeks.

Denny Hamlin, who won Stage 2, and Christopher Bell joined Reddick inside the top-five on Sunday, finishing third and fourth, respectively. Hamlin took the lead from Reddick on the final restart and seemed in position to put himself in the title race but came home third as the checkered flew. The result is the 11th top-five for the No. 11 team this season. Bell’s fourth-place result is his 14th top-five of the season, the most in the Cup Series, as well as his 22 top-10 finish, 11th in the last 13 races.

While Reddick is clinched to the Championship 4 race in Phoenix, Bell sits 29 points above the cutline heading to Round of 8 cutoff race in Martinsville next weekend. Hamlin will enter next Sunday below the cutline, 18 points under.

Race coverage at Martinsville Speedway next Sunday, November 3, can be seen on NBC at 2 p.m. EST, with radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM Radio Channel 90.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Race 34 of 36 – 267 Laps, 400.5 Miles

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS

1st, TYLER REDDICK
2nd, Ryan Blaney*
3rd, DENNY HAMLIN
4th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
5th, Chase Elliott*
18th, BUBBA WALLACE
22nd, ERIK JONES
23rd, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
26th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
36th, TY GIBBS
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 The Beast Killer Sunrise Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

Finishing Position: 1st

Can you take us through your emotions on those final laps?

“I can’t walk you through the last few laps. But my emotions were all over the place. Yeah, when we went long, I didn’t know how that was going to play out. I was worried that caution wasn’t going to come. We pit, lose a lap. Oh, damn. We get back on the lead lap. I was not expecting it, right? Nick (Payne, spotter) says caution. Great, we’re at the back, whatever else. It was like, ‘Yeah, we’re going to stay out.’ I was like, ‘Oh, snap, we’re going to stay out?’ We’re going to figure this out. Yeah, turn one went about as good as I thought it could have went. I saw Denny (Hamlin) get to my outside. That wasn’t great. We settled in there. I didn’t know how bad we were going to bleed. I drove into turn three kind of, I don’t know, out of desperation, something, I kind of held serve. I was very shocked by that. Then as laps just kept winding down, it didn’t truly feel like we were at a big tire deficit. You come to this place, you know tires are a premium. Early in the race we saw the 8 (Kyle Busch), a number of other cars, on three-, four-lap tires stay out and get their doors blown off. I was completely shocked we were able to stay in the mix like we were. Yeah, going into one, I made the right guess. I got the bottom. I got clean air. I got up in front of the 11 (Hamlin). I had a good run on the 12 (Ryan Blaney). I was just blown away that I had that kind of momentum going into turn three. I thought there was no way the 12 was going to leave, Blaney, was going to leave me the outside. He must have thought that I was just going to absolutely dive bomb it off in there to try to get around him. Once I saw him kind of shade down, I hit the gas and forgot about everything else. Came out on the other side in the lead. It was just crazy.”

How do you put out of your head what happened last week when you’re trying to make a move?

“You can’t think about it at all. I’m thankful that the cars are as safe as they are when it comes to rolling them over. They made big improvements with that from Gen-6 to Gen-7. Certainly, I didn’t think the crash was as big as it was. It was an interesting process understanding that. Again, I was just glad the car, for the most part, I stayed in the seat, nothing collapsed, nothing crazy happened. I don’t know. To your point, Bob (Pockrass, FOX Sports), we’re kind of crazy to some degree. My first lap in the car after flipping it, I drive off into turn three and four in practice right on the wall, like nothing had ever happened. That’s just how you have to be if you want to compete at this level. You’ve got to be able to remember the important things, remember the lessons. There’s certain things you just got to completely block out, forget, go into the next day, the next week completely ready to go like nothing ever happened.”

What about Homestead suits you?

“I have no idea. I like Florida. Maybe that’s some of it. The weather’s always nice. Yeah, this place is the only mile-and-a-half that we have that is shaped the way that it is. With the nature of the surface, the banking, just how well the wall is shaped, it really allows you to just get up there and rip it and make a lot of speed. Today was a day where you could really run the wall in (turns) three and four, but in one and two you had to move around quite a bit. That took some adjusting. But our car was really, really tuned for it. Our Beast Camry could kind of run wherever we wanted to. That was nice. It really was a big part of why we were able to win this race today. On older tires, we got up in line. Versatility is important here. I don’t know. This place has just been really, really fun from the first time I ever ran it as a rookie in the Truck Series. I don’t know what it is. Just me as a racer, I love stepping over the edge. This place seems to reward that to some degree. You have to take care of your tires. Being able to rip the fence when all else fails, man, there’s nowhere else like this place where you can do that and make that kind of speed. Just a lot of fun to run lap after lap.”

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Mavis Tire Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 3rd

What more could you do there to get the victory?

Well, I’m not really sure. Tried to cover all lanes, but just couldn’t quite get off the corner as good as I needed to there on that short run. Short run wasn’t my specialty all day, obviously. Either way, controlling the race with two to go, you got to try to find a way to finish it. Just didn’t.

What are you looking forward to heading to Martinsville next weekend?

“I mean, yeah, it’s another opportunity. Certainly, you’re not out of it till they throw the checkered flag at Martinsville.”

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Rheem Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 4th

What was lacking today that impeded you from victory today?

“I don’t know. A little bit. A couple cars just could get away. There were runs in race today where I felt really good, but just after restarts, I couldn’t keep up with them. This is so, so intense and we knew coming into the Round of 8 with these drivers, we were going to have winners, winners and winners. Coming to Homestead, you look at the guys who run well here and you’re expecting a winner from the bottom-half of the grid, and I think the same thing will happen in Martinsville. So, yeah, I’m glad we’ve been able to maximize our points and in order for us to transfer (to the Championship 4), we’re still going to have to be running for the win in Martinsville.”

Take us through your afternoon here today at Homestead.

“I don’t know. I guess I’m out of here with a top-five and getting points is really good. You have to win races in the Round of 8, and we haven’t done that yet. We’ll go to Martinsville, and yeah, I feel confident about where we’re at in Martinsville. (It) has been a good track for us in the past and I think we can build on that. Overall, I’m happy, just disappointed that we weren’t a little bit better contending for the win. Just, I don’t know.”

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 nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In 2025, Toyota’s 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 30 electrified options.

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

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Team Earn 25th-Place Finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway

Finish: 25th
Start: 30th
Points: 28th

“Our No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet team fought hard today at Homestead-Miami Speedway. At the start of the race, we picked up 14 positions in the first 20 laps. We had speed in our Chevy even though we lacked forward drive. During our first pit stop, we got boxed in by the car in front of us and that cost us a lot of positions on the track. We were able to race our way into the top 20, but we fought a tight balance for the rest of the race and also continued to be hindered by our pit box location. We raced in dirty air all day, which didn’t help our handling issues. It’s not the day we had hoped for, but our Richard Childress Racing team will go back to work and come back stronger here next year.” -Austin Dillon

Kyle Busch and the No. 8 Rebel Bourbon Chevrolet Team Lead Laps and Earn Lead Lap Finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway

Finish: 31st
Start: 17th
Points: 20th

“I wish we could have come away with a better finish in the Rebel Bourbon Chevrolet at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but not much went our way today. The positive is that we led a few laps today. At the start of the race we were loose in, tight in the middle and loose off. Crew chief Randall Burnett and all the guys on the team made a ton of changes throughout the race but we never hit on a setup that worked. It’s frustrating to race in dirty air, but that’s how it goes some days. This team is determined and we have two more races left to get a win before the season is over. Thanks to everyone at Rebel Bourbon who came out and supported us today. It’s been so cool getting to know everyone and seeing their support is awesome.” -Kyle Busch

RICK WARE RACING
Straight Talk Wireless 400
Date: Oct. 27, 2024
Event: Straight Talk Wireless 400 (Round 34 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format: 267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/85 laps/102 laps)

Race Winner: Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Winner: Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

RWR Race Finish:

● Kaz Grala (Started 27th, Finished 32nd/Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
● Corey LaJoie (Started 33rd, Finished 35th/ Running, completed 266 of 267 laps)

RWR Points:

● Corey LaJoie (32nd with 482 points)
● Kaz Grala (35th with 193 points)

RWR Notes:

● This was Grala’s first NASCAR Cup Series start at Homestead.
● This was LaJoie’s ninth NASCAR Cup Series start at Homestead. His best finish remains 20th, earned in October 2023.

Race Notes:

● Tyler Reddick won the Straight Talk Wireless 400 to score his eighth career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third of the season and his first at Homestead. His margin of victory over second-place Ryan Blaney was .241 of a second.
● There were six caution periods for a total of 30 laps.
● All but five of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● This was the second race in the semifinal Round of 8 of the NASCAR Playoffs. Reddick secured his spot in the Championship 4 via his win and joined last week’s winner, Joey Logano. Christopher Bell and William Byron are the other two drivers above the top-four cutline while Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Blaney and Chase Elliott are currently below the cutline with one race remaining before the final, winner-take-all Championship 4 Nov. 10 at Phoenix Raceway.

Sound Bites:

“It was just a tough day for us overall. I wish we could’ve had a better showing for Meat N’ Bone at their home track, but we’ve got two more races and I feel like we’ll be able to finish the season strong.” – Kaz Grala, driver of the No. 15 Meat N’ Bone Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the XFINITY 500 on Sunday, Nov. 3 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The penultimate race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts at 2 p.m. EST with live coverage provided by NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

AJ ALLMENDINGER
No. 16 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL1

• AJ Allmendinger qualified 32nd for the Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
• The first caution of the race came early on lap two; Allmendinger had driven up to 29th place. The field restarted on lap six, and Allmendinger continued to gain positions, taking over 16th place on lap 27, before green-flag pit stops began on lap 33. The No. 16 stayed on track, claiming second place on lap 34 and came to pit road on lap 39 for tires and fuel. The second caution of the day fell before Allmendinger had cycled through the field after his green flag stop. He was scored in 24th and reported his Chevy was tight and he needed more turn, but he had good rear drive he didn’t want to lose. The team came to pit road for four tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment and restarted in 30th place. Battling through the field, Allmendinger went on to finish the opening stage in 16th.
• Allmendinger came to pit road during the stage break for tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment to help with the handling of the car. He restarted the second stage in 17th place on lap 88. By lap 100, Allmendinger had taken over 12th place and stayed on track as green-flag pit stops began on lap 115. On lap 124, from third place, Allmendinger came to pit road for a scheduled, green-flag pit stop. After exiting pit road, Allmendinger continued to drive through the field, reporting the front end was tight, and he was losing rear grip. On the last lap of the stage, Allmendinger took 10th place, where he finished the stage.
• The No. 16 came to pit road during the stage break for four tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment to loosen up the car. Allmendinger restarted in 12th place on lap 172, hoping for a long run for the handling of the car. The caution came 14 laps later on lap 186; Allmendinger was scored in 12th. The team pitted for tires, fuel, and additional adjustments before restarting in 13th on lap 192. On the restart, Allmendinger took over 10th place and had taken ninth by lap 193. The team stayed on track as green-flag pit stops began, before coming to pit road on lap 223 from the fifth position. By lap 233, Allmendinger had regained his position in 10th place, and on lap 253 Allmendinger had taken over seventh. When the caution came on lap 257, the No. 16 came to pit road for four tires and fuel. He restarted in eighth place with seven laps remaining. Allmendinger went on to finish in eighth place.

“Overall, really good day. We had to come from the back several times. Andrew [Dickeson] and the whole No. 16 group did a great job. Pit stops were good, strategy was good. We probably needed just a little bit more front turn to go run with the leader. I was really happy; I felt like we had really good pace. Proud of our group and the effort today.” – AJ Allmendinger  

DANIEL HEMRIC
No. 31 Cirkul Camaro ZL1

• Daniel Hemric qualified ninth for the Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, earning his best qualifying effort of the 2024 NCS season.
• The field completed only one lap, before the first caution came out for a spin ahead of Hemric. Restarting from eighth, Hemric was slow to fire off and fell to 24th, before making his first, scheduled green-flag pit stop for tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. Firing off better the second run, Hemric made it back to the top 20, as debris brought out the second caution. While driving down pit road for a scheduled pit stop, Hemric made contact with another car and was forced to pit twice to make repairs to the grille of the No. 31 Cirkul Chevrolet. Restarting from 36th, Hemric made up nine spots to finish the first stage in 27th.
• During the first stage break, Hemric pitted for tires, fuel, wedge and right-side air pressure adjustments to help him drive into the corners better. He started the second stage from 23rd and made it as high as 12th when the green-flag pit cycle began. Hemric pitted on lap 120 for fresh tires and fuel. Towards the end of the stage, Hemric found speed and stayed on the lead lap to finish the second stage in 29th.
• Crew chief Trent Owens made the call for an attitude adjustment on the No. 31 Chevy, making multiple adjustments during the team’s scheduled pit stop. Hemric started the final stage in 30th, making his way up to 27th when the next caution came out. Hemric relayed that the previous changes gave him more movability in the No. 31 Chevy, as Owens brought him back down pit road for more of the same changes. Hemric restarted 30th on lap 192 and eventually fell one lap to the leaders. A late caution with 12 laps to go allowed Hemric to take the wave around and gain the lap back. He restarted 31st with seven to go and went on to finish the race in 29th.

“We started the weekend with so much speed and our best qualifying spot of the year. Unfortunately not being able to run the top was our biggest challenge. Trent [Owens] made some positive changes that helped get some movability in the No. 31 Cirkul Chevy and get us moving in the right direction towards the end.” – Daniel Hemric  
 
About Kaulig Racing

Kaulig Racing™ is a full-time, multi-car NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) team, owned by award winning entrepreneur, Matt Kaulig. Established in 2016, Kaulig Racing™ has earned 23 NXS wins, made the NXS Playoffs consecutively each season since the playoff system started, and won two regular-season championships. In 2021, the team competed in select NCS events, before expanding to a two-car, full-time NCS team in 2022 and adding a third, part-time entry during the 2023 season. Since its first NCS start in 2021, the team has earned two wins. Kaulig Racing is currently fielding two full-time entries in the NCS and continues to field three full-time NXS entries, with a part-time fourth entry at select events. To learn more about the team, visit kauligracing.com.

STEWART-HAAS RACING
Straight Talk Wireless 400

Date: Oct. 27, 2024
Event: Straight Talk Wireless 400 (Round 34 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format: 267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/85 laps/102 laps)

Race Winner: Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Winner: Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

SHR Finish:

● Ryan Preece (Started 35th, Finished 10th / Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
● Josh Berry (Started 12th, Finished 11th / Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
● Chase Briscoe (Started 13th, Finished 12th / Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
● Noah Gragson (Started 16th, Finished 19th / Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)

SHR Points:

● Chase Briscoe (15th with 2,146 points)
● Noah Gragson (25th with 559 points)
● Ryan Preece (26th with 552 points)
● Josh Berry (27th with 545 points)

SHR Notes:

● Preece earned his fifth top-10 of the season and his first top-10 in six career NASCAR Cup Series start at Homestead.
● This was Preece’s third straight finish among the top-25. He finished 25th Oct. 13 at the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval and 22nd last Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
● Preece’s 10th-place finish bettered his previous best result at Homestead – 13th, earned last year.
● Preece finished ninth in Stage 2 to earn two bonus points.
● Berry earned his 10th top-15 of the season and it came in his first career NASCAR Cup Series start at Homestead.
● This was Berry’s third straight finish among the top-25. He finished 22nd at the Roval and 24th at Las Vegas.
● Briscoe earned his 15th top-15 of the season and his first top-15 in four career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Homestead.
● Briscoe’s 12th-place result bettered his previous best finish at Homestead – 17th, earned last year.
● Gragson earned his 21st top-20 of the season and his first top-20 in two career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Homestead.
● This was Gragson’s second straight top-20. He finished 18th at Las Vegas.
● Gragson’s 19th-place result bettered his previous best finish at Homestead – 25th, earned in 2022.

Race Notes:

● Tyler Reddick won the Straight Talk Wireless 400 to score his eighth career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third of the season and his first at Homestead. His margin of victory over second-place Ryan Blaney was .241 of a second.

● There were six caution periods for a total of 30 laps.

● All but five of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

● This was the second race in the semifinal Round of 8 of the NASCAR Playoffs. Reddick secured his spot in the Championship 4 via his win and joined last week’s winner, Joey Logano. Christopher Bell and William Byron are the other two drivers above the top-four cutline while Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Blaney and Chase Elliott are currently below the cutline with one race remaining before the final, winner-take-all Championship 4 Nov. 10 at Phoenix Raceway.

Sound Bites:

“We had a good car and got a top-10 out of it. That one bad restart in the final stage kind of messed things up for us, but we had a top-10 car and we finished where we should have. Just had to fight for it.” – Ryan Preece, driver of the No. 41 Bonanza Cabernet Ford Mustang Dark Horse

“It was fun. I thought we did really well on the restarts. Just didn’t quite have the long-run speed early in the race to allow us to hang up there. But, all in all, it was a fun day and everybody at Stewart-Haas brought some good cars, so it was a lot of fun racing with all of us up there.” – Josh Berry, driver of the No. 4 Panini Color Blast Ford Mustang Dark Horse

“This car was decent from a speed standpoint. Definitely not good enough to win, to be honest, just not very good on the short run. We were just horrendous on the short run. I could never get it to turn. It would take us 35 laps to get the car where it needed to be. And on the long run, we were really good. We just gave up 10 seconds on the short run and could never get it back.” – Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 Zep Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the XFINITY 500 on Sunday, Nov. 3 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The penultimate race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts at 2 p.m. EST with live coverage provided by NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY
ROUND OF EIGHT: RACE TWO
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT
OCT. 27, 2024

 Elliott Leads Chevrolet with Top-Five Finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway
Five Camaro ZL1’s Claim Top-10 Finishes

 TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10:
POS. DRIVER
5th – Chase Elliott
6th – William Byron
7th – Alex Bowman
8th – AJ Allmendinger
9th – Carson Hocevar

WITH 34 NASCAR CUP SERIES RACES COMPLETE:
Wins: 15
Poles: 10
Top-Five Finishes: 67
Top-10 Finishes: 138

Stage Wins: 22

 UP NEXT: The NASCAR Cup Series will head to Martinsville Speedway next weekend, with the XFINITY 500 marking the elimination race for the Round of Eight. Coverage of the 500-lap event can be found on Sunday, Nov. 3, at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

• Looking to rebound from a tough start to the Round of Eight, Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 quickly turned a top-10 qualifying effort into a fight for the lead in the early laps of Stage One. Reaching the third position near the midway point of the 80-lap opening stage, crew chief Alan Gustafson called Elliott to pit road for the first green-flag stop of the race. A quick stop by the No. 9 pit crew put the former champion in position to cycle to the front and fight for the top of the leaderboard with 37 laps remaining in the stage – ultimately taking the first green-white checkered flag in the third position. Putting together yet another strong points run in Stage Two, Elliott continued to be a contender throughout the race – going on to lead Chevrolet to the checkered flag with a fifth-place result. Elliott, a past winner at Martinsville Speedway, will take on the Round of Eight elimination race from the eighth position in the standings and 43-points below the elimination line.
• Despite a disappointing qualifying result, William Byron quickly started clicking off position towards the front of the field – driving his No. 24 Valvoline Camaro ZL1 from 25th to the top-15 in just 15 laps. Hitting pit road for two rounds of stops during the opening stage, Byron had a masterful restart following the second caution of the race – maneuvering his Chevrolet-powered machine into the top-10 before settling into an eighth place finish in the stage. Collecting another set of crucial points in Stage Two, Byron remained a steady fixture in the top-10 through the remainder of the race – going on to extend his top-six streak to five-straight with a sixth-place finish. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native leads Chevrolet’s playoff contenders into the Round of Eight elimination race from the fourth position in the playoff standings with a seven-point cushion over the cutline.
• Running second to his Hendrick Motorsports teammate in the opening stage, Kyle Larson suffered a flat right-rear tire on his No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Camaro ZL1, bringing out the caution at the 49-lap marker. Immediately going to work on their Chevrolet, the Cliff Daniels-led team made a set of trips to pit road for repairs but maintained a position on the lead lap. Battling an ill-handling car well into Stage Two, a turnaround came to fruition as Larson progressively climbed the leaderboard – entering the top-five on lap 185. Closing to the bumper of then-race leader Ryan Blaney, a three-wide move for the lead with just 12 laps remaining ended with a spin that ended the valiant comeback. After a rollercoaster day, Larson took the checkered flag in the 13th position – heading into the final race of the Round of Eight fifth in the playoff standings and just seven-points below the elimination line.

 TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES:

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 13th

You were three-wide between the No. 12 and the No. 3 for the pass for the lead. What did you feel in the racecar when that happened?

“Yeah, I mean you’re making split-second decisions. Austin (Dillon) did nothing wrong. I was just hoping that he would see me coming as the No. 12 (Ryan Blaney) got to his inside, and maybe he’d run a lane off the wall just to give me some clean air. He continued to run his line. I had a little bit of a hole and I was trying to shoot the gap to get in front of the No. 3 and get to the wall quickly to either hopefully stay on the outside of the No. 12 or build a run to have a shot at him in (turns) one and two. But yeah, it just didn’t work out. I was going as hard as I could. The No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Chevy team did a great job rebounding after the flat tire.”

Next week, we head to Martinsville Speedway. What do you think about next Sunday?

“Yeah, we’ve been strong at Martinsville (Speedway) at times, so we’ll see. It’s not my best track, but I’ve been a lot better there since I joined Hendrick Motorsports. We just need to qualify well and give it our best shot.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 5th

You led the most laps that you’ve ever led at Homestead-Miami Speedway. What did you need to battle for the win.. were you fighting tight conditions there at the end?

“I just got tighter and tighter as the day went on. I was just trying to manage that on the front side of a run, and ultimately I just didn’t do a great job of managing it. When the pace got quicker and everyone started pushing, I didn’t really have anything left to push.

It was a really solid couple of weeks for the No. 9 NAPA Chevy team, from a pace perspective. That’s encouraging as you move along in the playoffs.”

You’ve run so well at Martinsville Speedway in the past. How confident are you going into the elimination race.

“Very confident.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 6th

On the last stop of the race, your team elected to pit first out of the playoff drivers. Was that the right move?

“I don’t think it really mattered. We kind of had what we had today. We weren’t good enough, and we were just trying to get all we could. I feel like a sixth-place finish is good. If it had gone green there, we were going to end up top-five. I don’t know how that changes the points, but we just have to go to Martinsville Speedway and compete for a win.”

Is Martinsville Speedway a place where you think you can get the job done?

“Absolutely. We did it in the spring, so we should be able to.”

Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Cirkul Camaro ZL1

Finished: 29th “We started the weekend with so much speed and our best qualifying spot of the year. Unfortunately not being able to run the top was our biggest challenge. Trent [Owens] made some positive changes that helped get some movability in the No. 31 Cirkul Chevy and get us moving in the right direction towards the end.”

DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAYFRANCHISE.COM CAMARO ZL1

Finished: 16th

Suarez on his race at Homestead-Miami Speedway:

“It was an OK day for the No. 99 FreewayFranchise.com Chevy team. It was a little bit difficult when you have top-15 speed. We had a couple things that didn’t go our way; a slow stop and then the strategy right there at the end. We finished close to what we deserved, so we’ll take it and move onto Martinsville (Speedway).”

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Homestead-Miami Speedway | Sunday, October 27, 2024
Straight Talk Wireless 400 Cup Post Race

FORD RESULTS (UNOFFICIAL)

2nd – Ryan Blaney
10th – Ryan Preece
11th – Josh Berry
12th – Chase Briscoe
14th – Michael McDowell
15th – Chris Buescher
17th – Brad Keselowski
19th – Noah Gragson
20th – Todd Gilliland
24th – Harrison Burton
27th – Austin Cindric
28th – Joey Logano
32nd – Kaz Grala
35th – Corey LaJoie
37th – Chad Finchum

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Richmond Water Heaters Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Finished 2nd)

YOU GOT OUT OF THE CAR SHAKING YOUR HEAD IN DISBELIEF, WHAT ARE YOU FEELING IN THIS MOMENT?

“Yeah, disappointment. I had a good shot to win it and I didn’t have a very good last lap. I thought I got into three hard and the 45 just went in there and it stuck for him, which is really impressive. I hate to give one away there like that. I don’t know if we gave it away. We got the lead back after losing it on the restart and just that last lap didn’t play out for us. I appreciate everybody on the 12 team for bringing a really fast race car. I had a really great shot to go to Phoenix and I still have one more chance, so we still have to look forward to that. I appreciate Menards and Ford and Ford Performance, Richmond, Advance Auto Parts, Body Armor, DEX Imaging and everybody. It is a shame. I will be thinking through it all night of what I should have done different, probably. That is just the way it goes but I am really proud of the effort and hopefully we can bring it to them next week.”

YOU MENTIONED NEXT WEEK. YOU GUYS WON LAST YEAR TO GET INTO THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4, SO IT IS OPTIMISTIC AT THIS POINT?

“Yeah, this feeling will suck for tonight and then we will look forward to Martinsville starting tomorrow morning. We try to forget things quick. I try to do that more and more as I have gotten older and just move on to the next thing good bad or indifferent and focus on the next task. This team will do that. I just can’t say how proud I am of them, coming in here and understanding what we need to do. It is a shame it didn’t work out but we did have good fortune at Martinsville last year so hopefully we can bring the same kind of speed and be in contention to win.”

“It was hardfought. It stinks. I ended up having to pass the 11 and was finally getting by him and I just didn’t really have a good last lap. I didn’t really get to the bottom like I wanted to in 1 and 2 and it gave the 45 some clean air and he got a big shove by the 11 down the back. I didn’t know which way it was going to go, honestly. It was timed out perfect for him of getting to my bumper as soon as we got to the corner. I kind of thought I could slide up and be good and I sent it in there and he sent it in there miles further than me, which I cannot believe that it stuck. The Toyota’s could do that really good all day. Their entry speed was crazy fast and it benefitted him there. It stinks. It was an up and down day and it was a shame to lose one on the last lap like that.”

DID THAT LAST RESTART GO HOW YOU WANTED IT TO?

“Well, I got put three-wide on the restart so interpret that how you want.”

DO YOU FEEL FIRED UP FOR MARTINSVILLE?

“I am not fired up right now for Martinsville. I will take the night to replay a couple things and figure out what I could have done better. Tomorrow morning we will restack and get ready for Martinsville. I am excited though. I am super excited about the speed we had today. I can’t complain about that. Last week’s speed was great too before we got in the wreck. Hopefully we bring that same speed to Martinsville.”

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU THINK YOU COULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY ON THE LAST LAP?

“Yeah, tons of things. It is easy to think about it after the race when it doesn’t go well. I try not to stew over these things. I try to learn from them and know that something could have been a better route to do and maybe if you are in that spot next time you do that. I try not to sit around and let it eat at me because then you are going to go crazy. There are some things I could have done different and hopefully I can do those different things if I am ever in that spot again.”

---

RYAN PREECE, No. 41 Bonanza Cabernet Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Finished 10th)

“We had a good car and got a top 10 out of it. That one bad restart in Stage 3 kind of screwed us, but yeah, we had a top 10 car and that is where we were able to finish, which is where we should have been. We finished where we should have, we just had to fight for it.”

JOSH BERRY, No. 4 Panini Color Blast Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Finished 11th)

“Yeah, it was fun. I thought we did really well on the restarts. Just didn’t quite have the long run speed early in the race, I guess, to kind of hang up there. But all in all, it was a fun day and everybody at Stewart-Haas brought some good cars. So it was a lot of fun racing with all of us up there and got two more.”

Toyota Racing – Tyler Reddick
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (October 26, 2024) – 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick was made available to the media on Saturday after winning the pole position for the NASCAR Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 The Beast Killer Sunrise Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

Can you take us through your pole-winning lap?

“Yeah, a lot of this starts in the weeks leading up to the race. And I think a lot of the speed we brought to (Las) Vegas has really continued so far today. And in practice, obviously, fired off with a lot of speed there. It was nice to see that, gave us confidence going into Group A qualifying. And yeah, being able to run the lap we did in the first round gave us even more of that confidence. Then, going into round two, looking at what everyone had been running for speed, (I) decided to do what I felt was best and it worked out. Sometimes, you take that risk, and it doesn’t really go your way. Thankfully, it was a good lap for us. Given equal tires, the 5 (Kyle Larson) would’ve probably been a little faster, but we’re fortunate to go in Group A this weekend and capitalize on it.”

Is your pole run kind of what you and your team expected to do in qualifying?

“Yeah, the pole has kind of eluded me in the Cup Series here (Homestead-Miami Speedway). We’ve been very close, we just needed to have a really good round two. Yeah, I think we, for our group, ran a really good lap for sure. Yeah, again, we were just fortunate where we were in Group A. It padded us a little bit. Yeah, it’s always nice to run a really good lap. But when you run your lap, and the 5 car runs after you, you know they have time to adjust. Curious to see what the 5 and 20 (Christopher Bell) did there. Obviously, the 5 got pretty close. All-in-all was a good day for us. And looking forward to the race tomorrow.”

How important is your choice of pit selection for tomorrow’s race after getting pole position?

“Yeah, I mean any advantage you can get in this Next Gen era is big. Yeah, it’s great. I was looking at all the Toyotas in the second round and all the Camrys having a lot of speed. Toyota having speed across the board this weekend is really, really cool. This is the 13th time they’ve swept all three (poles across NASCAR’s three national series at the same track in the same weekend). It’s nice to be able to come to a track like this where myself as a driver, I feel like I have an advantage, but to also be in a Camry and to have the speed across the board it seems like we do here. Just proud of everyone’s effort back at Airspeed (23XI headquarters). Proud of everyone’s effort at TRD (Toyota Racing Development). It’s been nice to be able to rebound from a rough ending a week ago.”

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 nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In 2025, Toyota’s 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 30 electrified options.

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