Category: NASCAR Cup PR

This Week in Motorsports: July 20-26, 2020

· NCS/NXS/NGROTS/ARCA: Kansas Speedway (Kansas City, Kansas) – July 23-25

PLANO, Texas (July 22, 2020) – The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) kicks off the Kansas Speedway race weekend, which features five races in three days, including the first NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series (NGROTS) doubleheader.

NASCAR National Series – NCS | NXS | NGROTS

Hamlin Most Recent Kansas Winner… Denny Hamlin drove to his fifth win of 2019 last fall at Kansas Speedway, clinching a spot in the Round of 8 before making a Championship 4 appearance. Hamlin is responsible for two of Toyota’s six Cup Series Kansas victories, having also scored Toyota’s first NCS victory at Kansas Speedway in 2012.

Playoff Positioning… With eight races remaining before the NCS Playoffs begin, three Toyota drivers currently hold Playoff positions. Hamlin, on the strength of a series-leading four victories as well as Martinsville winner, Martin Truex Jr., have clinched, while Kyle Busch is currently projected to have a 14th-place positioning based on points. After a solid top-10 finish in Texas, Erik Jones currently sits just 24 points out of securing a Playoff spot for the third straight season.

Jones’ First Win… Brandon Jones will have fond memories as he returns to Kansas Speedway – a place he drove to his first-career NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) victory last fall. Jones led the final 10 laps and survived a final restart to score the win. Since then, Jones added a second NXS victory at Phoenix Raceway in March – marking Toyota’s 500th NASCAR triumph since 2004.

Rookie Candidate Back on Track… Harrison Burton drove to a fourth-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon. Burton has scored top-five finishes in half of his NXS starts this season and returns to a track that he drove to a top-10 finish last season in the NGROTS.

Double-Double for the Trucks… The Truck Series drivers gets their first shot at a doubleheader this weekend at Kansas Speedway with races on both Friday evening and Saturday afternoon. Series points leader Austin Hill looks for his first win of the season, while fellow Tundra drivers Christian Eckes (second) and Stewart Friesen (fourth) are coming off of season-best finishes at Texas Motor Speedway.

Graduation Time… Rookie of the Year contender Derek Kraus is skipping his high school graduation to compete in the NGROTS race at Kansas on Friday evening. After his sixth top-15 finish of the season in Texas, the 18-year-old driver sits 11th in the overall point standings – currently just 11 points out of a Playoff spot.

Tundra Strong in Sunflower State… Toyota has won six of the past seven NGROTS events at Kansas Speedway with last week’s Truck Series winner Busch earning two of those victories. Former Tundra drivers Matt Crafton, William Byron and Noah Gragson have also driven to Kansas victory lane. This week, Pocono NGROTS victor Brandon Jones will drive the No. 51 Toyota Tundra in both doubleheader events.

NASCAR Regional Series – ARCA

The Streak Lives On… Ty Gibbs helped extend two streaks with his win at Iowa Speedway – one for himself and one for Toyota. The 17-year-old drove to his third national ARCA Menards Series triumph in the past four events by leading 140 of 150 laps in Iowa. The victory also extends the series-record winning streak for Toyota to 15 consecutive events. Due to age restrictions, Riley Herbst will replace Gibbs and drive the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry at Kansas Speedway in Friday evening’s ARCA event.

Kansas Kind to Self… ARCA Menards Series points leader Michael Self is excited for a second stop this year at Kansas Speedway. The track – which is scheduled to host the season finale – has been very strong for Self. He scored his first career ARCA victory in Kansas in 2017 and has finished top-three in every start at the 1.5-mile track.

Stay Connected

@ToyotaRacing.com @ToyotaRacing

facebook.com/ToyotaRacing Camera With Flash on Apple iOS 11.3 ToyotaRacingMedia.com

# # #

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold nearly 2.8 million cars and trucks (nearly 2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2019.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

Event: Super Start Batteries 400

Venue: Kansas Speedway (Kansas City, Kansas)

Date/Broadcast: Thursday, July 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN

As the NASCAR Cup Series travels to the Sunflower State for a Thursday night show under the lights at Kansas Speedway, Go Fas Racing driver Corey LaJoie has his sights set on logging a seventh top-20 finish with a boost of momentum.

The 28-year-old notched his sixth top-20 effort of the 2020 season at Texas Motor Speedway this past Sunday by finishing 16th in the No. 32 Ford. The result is his best finish in the Lone Star State.

Currently, LaJoie has a best finish of 22nd at Kansas Speedway, a result he filed in his freshman season behind the wheel of the No. 32 entry for Go Fas Racing. He will look to change that come Thursday night while piloting the Plan B Sales Ford Mustang for 400 miles.

Plan B Sales was founded in 2010 with the goal of bringing service to dealers that carry licensed motorsports products. Over the last few years, Plan B Sales has grown to be the largest account for Lionel, servicing the motorsports market and has expanded the product offerings.

The company previously worked with the GFR team in 2018 with then driver Matt DiBenedetto at Kansas Speedway.

Fans can catch the 267 laps of action Thursday night from Kansas at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

LaJoie on the upcoming race:
“We’ve had a couple solid races over the past month so I expect Kansas on Thursday night to be a good one as well. It’ll also be cool to carry the names of some of our biggest fans on the car through the program Plan B sales put together. I’m really excited to get to Kansas and to have an opportunity to continue the strong runs we’ve had recently and I hope everyone checks out www.planbsales.com to grab a diecast of this car and tunes in to cheer us on!”

LaJoie’s Cup history at Kansas Speedway:
Starts: 6
Best Finish: 22nd (2019)
Average Start: 30th
Average Finish: 27th

Looking back on Texas Motor Speedway:
Corey LaJoie and the No. 32 team logged their sixth top-20 of the year this past Sunday in the ‘Lone Star State’ at Texas Motor Speedway. LaJoie steered his Trump 2020 Ford to a 16th-place finish in the 500-mile event after starting 36th. In the opening 12 laps, the North Carolina native had raced his way to 29th and remained in that spot until the competition caution on lap 21.

The Go Fas Racing Ford restarted 26th for the sprint to the green-and-white checkered flag to end stage two. LaJoie made a green-flag pit stop on lap 91 for fuel only to make it to the end of the segment. After crossing the line 30th in the free-pass position to finish stage one on lap 105, the 28-year-old driver said his race car was “tight and builds tighter through the corner.”

Crew Chief Ryan Sparks planned a four-tire stop with fuel and an adjustment to help with front turn under the stage break to gear up for the second segment. By lap 124 of stage two, LaJoie had advanced to the 24th position, and soon after reported that the Trump 2020 machine was a little edgy. He remained on track until dropping to pit road for a scheduled green-flag stop of four tires and fuel with few laps remaining in stage two. One lap down, LaJoie finished 26th.

Sparks opted to take the wave-around, putting the No. 32 back on the lead lap for the final segment in No Limits, Texas in the 22nd position. LaJoie was able to avoid a multi-car crash at the outset of stage three and battled hard in 19th with 100 laps left on the board. The Roush Yates-powered No. 32 Mustang made its penultimate stop of the race on lap 306 under caution for a routine stop, plus a chassis adjustment, giving up the 14th position. A yellow flag that flew on lap 328 allowed the GFR team to pit one final time to loosen the car and grab four fresh tries and fuel for the closing laps. The team crossed the line 16th, concluding a strong day at Texas Motor Speedway.

---

About Our Team

About Plan B Sales:
Plan B Sales was founded in 2010 with the goal of bringing service to dealers that carry licensed motorsports product. We started as a Lionel diecast and Chase Authentics apparel distributor. Over the last few years we have grown to be the largest account for Lionel servicing the motorsports market and have expanded the product offerings.

About Go Fas Racing:
Go Fas Racing (GFR) currently fields Ford Mustangs in the NASCAR Cup Series for driver Corey LaJoie. Located in Mooresville, North Carolina, GFR has competed in the NASCAR’s premier series since 2014; fielding cars for some of NASCAR’s top drivers, including past champions. To find out more information about our team please visit www.GoFasRacing.com.

Stay up-to-date on Corey LaJoie:
To get live updates during the race weekends follow @coreylajoie on Instagram and Twitter. Make sure to give Corey a “like” on Facebook – “@CoreyLaJoieRacing”. For a detailed bio and updated in-season statistics, please visit www.coreylajoieracing.com.

This afternoon, NASCAR has announced that the remainder of the 2020 season will be run without practice and qualifying in all three national series.

“Following discussions with our race teams and the broader industry, NASCAR will continue to conduct its race weekends without practice and qualifying for the remainder of the 2020 season in all three national series. The current format has worked well in addressing several challenges during our return to racing. Most importantly, we have seen competitive racing week-to-week. NASCAR will adjust the starting lineup draw procedure for the Playoff races, and will announce the new process at a later date.” – Scott Miller, NASCAR Senior Vice President, Competition

KANSAS SPEEDWAY (1.5-MILE OVAL)
LOCATION: KANSAS CITY, KANSAS
EVENT: NASCAR CUP SERIES (RACE 19 OF 36)
TUNE IN: 7:30 P.M. ET, THURSDAY, JULY 23 (NBCSN/MRN/SIRIUSXM)

Chase Elliott
No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver Chase Elliott Hometown Dawsonville, Georgia
Age 24 Resides Dawsonville, Georgia

2020 Season
5th in standings
18 starts
1 win
1 pole position
7 top-five finishes
9 top-10 finishes
451 laps led

Career
167 starts
7 wins
9 pole positions
51 top-five finishes
83 top-10 finishes
2,295 laps led

Track Career
8 starts
1 win
0 pole positions
4 top-five finishes
5 top-10 finishes
97 laps led

HALFWAY THERE: The NASCAR Cup Series has officially hit the halfway point of 2020. Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, has seven top-five finishes – the most he has collected through 18 races in a season – and nine top-10s. His 451 laps led are also a career high at this point in the year and are currently fifth-most in the series. He continues to lead all drivers with five stage wins. In the first half, Elliott also has garnered the third-most stage points (179) and is currently fifth in the driver standings, 117 points behind leader Kevin Harvick.

KANSAS STATS: On Thursday, Elliott is set to make his ninth Kansas Speedway start in the NASCAR Cup Series. He averaged a third-place finish in the two races at Kansas in 2019, the best of all drivers in the series. In Elliott’s previous eight starts at the track, he garnered one win, four top-five finishes – tied with Charlotte for the second-most at any track in his career – and five top-10s. He has finished inside the top five in four of the last five races at the 1.5-mile track. Elliott’s three consecutive top-fives are tied with Charlotte and Michigan for the most at a single track in his Cup Series career. He also has finished inside the top 10 in every stage in the last three events at Kansas.

LAST TIME AROUND: Last October, in a double-overtime event at Kansas Speedway, a gutsy late-race drive from Elliott yielded a second-place finish. The runner-up result allowed him to advance to the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs Round of 8 for the third consecutive season.

WEEKDAY WARRIOR: Since the Cup Series returned in May from a two-month hiatus, Elliott has won two of the five events run on weekdays: the 300-mile race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Thursday, May 28, and the NASCAR All-Star Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Wednesday, July 15.

1.5-MILE TRACKS IN 2020: In seven 1.5-mile races in 2020, Elliott won at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 28 and has two runner-up finishes, which lead all drivers. On 1.5-milers, he has led the fifth-most laps (189) in the Cup Series and his three top-five finishes are tied for the third-most. His two stage wins are tied for second-most in the series this season.

NAPA AT KANSAS: On Thursday night at Kansas Speedway, the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE will don the familiar blue, white and yellow NAPA AUTO PARTS paint scheme. The Atlanta-based company is serving as majority sponsor for Elliott and the No. 9 team for a total of 26 NASCAR Cup Series races this season.

PIT PROWESS: Through 18 NASCAR Cup Series races in 2020, the No. 9 NAPA team owns the second-best average time for four-tire stops at 13.92 seconds.

WELCOME HOME: No. 9 team jackman T.J. Semke hails from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, less than 40 miles from Kansas Speedway. Before stepping on the football field at the University of Kansas in 2012, Semke was a part-time bounty hunter. The 25-year-old was a defensive lineman for the Kansas Jayhawks for three years, earning Academic All-Big 12 Second Team honors twice. Semke signed with Hendrick Motorsports in October 2016.

BEHIND THE 9: Crew chief Alan Gustafson is trying his hand as a host in a new Hendrick Motorsports video series called “Behind the 9” in which he interviews each member of the No. 9 crew. Fans are able to learn about where they came from and the role they serve on the team, with each bringing a unique personality and skillset. Episodes are released every Tuesday on the Hendrick Motorsports Facebook page and YouTube channel. The most recent episode features tire carrier Jared Erspamer.

​
​ ​ ​
​

William Byron
No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver William Byron Hometown Charlotte, North Carolina
Age 22 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina

2020 Season
16th in standings
18 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
5 top-10 finishes
45 laps led

Career
90 starts
0 wins
5 pole positions
5 top-five finishes
22 top-10 finishes
339 laps led

Track Career
4 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
1 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finishes
5 laps led

BABY KNAUS: In anticipation of the birth of his second child, crew chief Chad Knaus will miss Thursday night’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway. Knaus and wife Brooke are expecting their new addition – a little girl – any day. In his absence, veteran crew chief Keith Rodden will call the shots for William Byron and the No. 24 Axalta team at Kansas.

RODDEN ON DECK: Rodden has called 138 Cup Series races as a crew chief for drivers Jamie McMurray and Kasey Kahne, who he led to victory for Hendrick Motorsports at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2017. Coincidentally, that crown jewel win fell on July 23 – the same date of Thursday night’s race at Kansas Speedway. Rodden, who oversees a variety of special projects for Hendrick Motorsports, also won the 2014 NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway with McMurray and Chip Ganassi Racing. He has called seven Cup races at Kansas with a best finish of fourth with Kahne in 2015.

HOT START AT KANSAS: Right out of the gate, Byron found success at Kansas Speedway in just his first two NASCAR national series appearances at the 1.5-mile track. With one NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series start in 2016 and one Xfinity Series start in 2017, Byron has finished no worse than fourth. In fact, in his debut at the intermediate oval in 2016 – just his fifth Truck Series start – Byron started from the second position, led 34 laps and collected his first series win, which kickstarted the most successful season by a rookie in the history of the Truck Series.

RACING FOR REDEMPTION: Since his early success at Kansas Speedway, Byron has made four Cup Series starts at the 1.5-mile track. His best result came last October when he ran solidly at the front of the field and scored a top-five finish. However, Byron’s other Cup Series stats at Kansas don’t match the runs he was having. During his rookie season, Byron was running top 10 in the May race before a late-race multi-car incident ended his day with a 33rd-place finish. While in October of 2018, a mechanical issue hindered his performance, leaving him 38th. Last May, Byron was running in the second position when a pit road penalty during green-flag pit stops relegated him to a 20th-place finish.

EYES ON THE NEXT EIGHT: Looking to lock himself into the playoffs for the second time in his three-year NASCAR Cup Series career, Byron is 17th in the playoff standings with eight races left in the regular season and two playoff points to his name. While a win in one of the upcoming points-paying races would automatically secure his position in the fight for the championship, Byron currently is sitting just two points below the playoff cutline heading into the Kansas weekend.

AT IT AGAIN WITH AXALTA: This weekend at Kansas Speedway, Byron will pilot the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE with the iconic flames that fans are accustomed to seeing. In 2020, Axalta is the 22-race majority partner of the No. 24 team. The company’s relationship with Hendrick Motorsports was recently extended, taking one of the most enduring partnerships in sports through 2027.

​
​ ​ ​
​

Jimmie Johnson
No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hometown El Cajon, California
Age 44 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina

2020 Season
15th in standings
17 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
2 top-five finishes
6 top-10 finishes
99 laps led

Career
668 starts
83 wins
36 pole positions
229 top-five finishes
370 top-10 finishes
18,933 laps led

Track Career
27 starts
3 wins
3 pole positions
9 top-five finishes
19 top-10 finishes
601 laps led

KANSAS WINS: Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson has seen plenty of success over the course of his 27 starts at Kansas Speedway, accumulating a record three wins at the 1.5-mile track. The driver’s most recent win there came on May 9, 2015, when he led the final 10 laps to edge Kevin Harvick for the victory. Johnson owns 28 career Cup Series wins on 1.5-mile tracks, the most of all-time. At Kansas, he also has the second-most top-five finishes (nine), the most top-10s (19) and the fourth-most laps led (601).

ABOVE AVERAGE AT KANSAS: Johnson had the sixth-best average finish at Kansas Speedway last season. He finished sixth in the spring event and 10th in the fall for an average finish of 8.0. Hendrick Motorsports was strong overall at Kansas in 2019, with Chase Elliott posting the top average result (3.0) and Alex Bowman the fifth-best (6.5).

TEXAS REWIND: Fast cars don’t always win. Mired by a pit road penalty after driving into the top 10 from his 20th-place starting position at Texas Motor Speedway, Johnson again drove back into the top 10 from 32nd after serving his penalty. As he continued his forward march, misfortune struck when Johnson got into the marbles and hit the wall on lap 117 causing significant damage. The team stayed the course even though they were multiple laps down and moved from 40th to 26th for the finish. All in all, Johnson passed 32 cars for position under green flag conditions throughout the race at Texas.

PLAYOFF PICTURE: With eight races remaining in the regular season before the NASCAR playoffs begin, Johnson is 15th in the point standings, two points above teammate William Byron in 16th. Johnson missed the event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in early July due to a positive COVID-19 test, but NASCAR granted the driver a playoff waiver if he were to otherwise qualify for the post-season.

BUSY IN THE PITS: The No. 48 crew ranks ninth in the NASCAR Cup Series with an average four-tire stop time of 14.21 seconds. The team is coached by Jon Carvin and consists of veteran gasman Brandon Harder, tire carrier Allan Stallings, jackman Kyle Tudor and tire changers Calvin Teague and Donnie Tasser.

ALLY SALUTES: On Thursday night in Kansas, primary sponsor Ally will honor Airman First Class and United States Airforce reservist LaToya Freeman with her name on the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet. Freeman, a Jacksonville, Florida, native is stationed at Duke Field, 919th Special Operations Wing, and has been a supervisor in Ally’s Jacksonville office for the last 10 years.

​
​ ​ ​
​

Alex Bowman
No. 88 ChevyGoods.com/Adam’s Polishes Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE ​
Driver Alex Bowman Hometown Tucson, Arizona
Age 27 Resides Concord, North Carolina

2020 Season
11th in standings
18 starts
1 win
0 pole positions
2 top-five finishes
5 top-10 finishes
381 laps led

Career
171 starts
2 wins
2 pole positions
12 top-five finishes
31 top-10 finishes
855 laps led

Track Career
9 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
1 top-five finish
3 top-10 finish
70 laps led

DRIVING IN KANSAS: Alex Bowman will make his 10th NASCAR Cup Series start at Kansas Speedway under the lights on Thursday evening. The Tucson, Arizona, native has qualified fifth on two occasions (2016 and 2019) and got his best finish of second during the spring race last season. Bowman led 63 laps before the No. 2 car of Brad Keselowski got around him with 11 laps remaining in the 271-lap event. Bowman had the fifth-best average finish (6.5) at the track last season. The 27-year-old has one start there in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, where he qualified and finished in the 11th position back in 2013. Bowman has a stellar record at the 1.5-mile facility in the ARCA Menards Series with two front row starting positions, including a pole position in 2012. In the two ARCA races he ranat Kansas, Bowman captured the victory in both events.

KNOCKING ON THE DOOR: There are five tracks where Bowman has finished second at least once but has yet to capture a victory. Last season, he was the runner-up finisher at Talladega, Kansas, Dover and the Charlotte ROVAL. Earlier this season, Bowman finished second at Darlington on May 17 after leading 41 laps at the South Carolina venue.

1.5-MILE STATS: This season Bowman has led 215 laps on tracks measuring 1.5 miles in length, which isthe fourth-most in the NASCAR Cup Series. Although he has led over 200 laps, his best finish in 2020 on a track of this length is 12th at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The No. 88 team has won three stages on intermediate tracks this year.

LEADING LAPS: Bowman has led 855 laps in his six-year career in the NASCAR Cup Series. So far this season, the driver of the No. 88 machine has led laps during six events at five different tracks, totaling 381 circuits. He led his most laps ever during a single race in 2016 when he was in front for 194 laps at Phoenix Raceway before finishing sixth.

STAGE WINNER: Bowman has won four stages this season, which is tied with Keselowski and Joey Logano for the second-most in the NASCAR Cup Series. The No. 88 team has captured 154 stage points in 18 events in 2020.

IVES AT KANSAS: Crew chief Greg Ives will call the shots for the 11th time at Kansas Speedway on Thursday night. The Bark River, Michigan, native’s drivers have two top-five results, five top-10s and have led 72 laps at the 1.5-mile facility. Ives’ best finish of second came in the spring of 2019 after the team rolled off fifth and led for 63 laps. His resumé also includes one top-five and two top-10s at the venue in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. In 2013, Ives’ driver led 81 laps en route to a third-place finish at the facility. Ives was a race engineer for the No. 48 team at Hendrick Motorsports from 2006 until 2012. During that time, he was part of two wins, two pole awards and eight top-10 finishes at Kansas.

WELCOME BACK, CHEVYGOODS.COM: The black and yellow ChevyGoods.com paint scheme featuring Adam’s Polishes will be on board Bowman’s No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE in Kansas under the lights. Adam’s Polishes produces high quality products for auto detailing enthusiasts. In January, Hendrick Motorsports announced its partnership with ChevyGoods.com, which includes primary sponsorship of Bowman for 26 events. Associate brands that will be featured throughout 2020 are Adam’s Polishes, NOCO and Truck Hero.

GOOD DISCOUNTS: During the month of July, No. 88 team sponsor ChevyGoods.com is providing discounts on all accessories, including Adam’s Polishes, NOCO and Truck Hero. Customers can receive 10% off MSRP with purchases of $100-$249 (offer code “GET10”), 15% off with purchases of $250-$499 (code “GET15”), and 20% off with purchases of more than $500 (code “GET20”).

​
​ ​ ​
​

Hendrick Motorsports

KC MASTERPIECE: In NASCAR Cup Series competition, Hendrick Motorsports leads in every major statistical category at Kansas Speedway. The organization holds the track records for wins (seven), runner-up finishes (six), top-fives (35), top-10s (61), laps led (1,245) and average finish (13.1). Its five Kansas pole positions are tied for the most ever.

LAST YEAR: In two visits to Kansas Speedway in 2019, Hendrick Motorsports’ four-car stable led all NASCAR Cup Series organizations in second-place finishes (two), top-fives (four), top-10s (six) and average finish (7.5). It led 124 laps at the track last season, the second-most among all teams.

SETTING THE STAGE: Through 18 races this season, Hendrick Motorsports leads all NASCAR Cup Series teams in stage wins (12) and stage top-10 finishes (83).

THURSDAY NIGHT’S ALL RIGHT: Going into Thursday night’s race at Kansas Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports holds the all-time record for NASCAR Cup Series wins at 1.5-mile venues with 60 – nine more than anyone else. The team’s most recent 1.5-mile victory came courtesy of driver Chase Elliott on May 28 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, which was the last time the series raced on a Thursday.

JUST NEED SOME LUCK: Hendrick Motorsports drivers are running better than they’re finishing in 2020 – by a lot. Alex Bowman’s average running position is 5.85 positions better than his average finish, which is the largest differential in the NASCAR Cup Series. Running 5.7 positions better than his average final result, Elliott is second in the series, with Jimmie Johnson fourth overall with a 3.65 differential.

FACTS AND FIGURES: Since its inception in 1984, Hendrick Motorsports has earned 258 race victories and holds the all-time records for championships (12), pole positions (226), top-five finishes (1,082), top-10s (1,864) and laps led (69,865) in points-paying NASCAR Cup Series competition. Including 2020, the organization has won at least one race in 35 consecutive seasons, the longest-ever streak. Hendrick Motorsports is 10 wins away from tying Petty Enterprises’ all-time Cup record of 268.

​
​ ​ ​
​

QUOTABLE /
Driver Chase Elliott on Kansas Speedway:
“To me, Kansas feels like such a small mile and half compared to some of the other ones we go to. I just feel like the corners are sharper than some other places and with it being progressively banked, the top side is going to continue to become dominant. I think in a way, it’s going to turn into Homestead in some situations and as time goes on. The way the corners are shaped, it’s kind of small and that top groove having more banking than the other ones as you move down the track is going to make it a top-dominant racetrack. Typically, those tracks put on good shows, so I expect it to age really well. I look forward to racing there this weekend. It is a fun track.”

Crew chief Chad Knaus on being home for birth of his second child:
“Originally this was going to be a stretch of back-to-back off weekends for us and everything was going to go to plan so I could be home for those two weeks. Unfortunately, we now have two races in one week due to the shift in the schedule from the pandemic. Either way, we still have a great plan in place so that I get to be by Brooke’s side, and we can welcome our baby girl together.”

Knaus on Keith Rodden filling in:
“The No. 24 car has been strong even when the results haven’t shown it. Every week we lay out a pretty in-depth plan of what we’re going to do before we even get to the racetrack, so Thursday will be no different. We have a lot of depth to pull from in this situation at Hendrick Motorsports, and I know Keith (Rodden) is more than capable of getting the job done. Keith’s been working with the team the last few races in preparation of this situation, and I have all the faith that it will be a solid race for him and the No. 24 team.”

Keith Rodden on subbing for Chad Knaus at Kansas:
“I’m super pumped to get to the track again and help out Chad, William and the No. 24 team. Being present for the birth of your child is important, especially in the world we are in now. That’s a moment you don’t want to take for granted. Myself and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports support Chad and his family 100% in whatever they need. I’ve known Chad for years and our communication with each other is great. I’ve also been working with William and the No. 24 team the last several weeks in anticipation of this moment. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to step in and represent Axalta and Hendrick Motorsports. I want to get the best possible result, but the ultimate goal is to show up to win and bring a trophy back for Chad and his family.”

Driver William Byron on Chad Knaus and Keith Rodden:
“I’m excited for Chad and Brooke on having their second child. This is an important moment for them as a family. While we will miss Chad at the track on Thursday, I know that Keith will do a good job taking over during his absence. No matter the situation, the goal remains the same for the No. 24 team and we’re all committed to it.”

Byron on Kansas Speedway:
“I think Kansas is closer in relation to Charlotte with the amount of grooves it has and the ability you have to make the outside lane work. I think that outside lane is the preferred groove as the race goes along there. In terms of the track surface though, it’s similar to Texas with how smooth it is. It’s starting to get some grain to it and some character the more we race there. It’s a great track, honestly. I think it’s one of the best mile-and-a-half tracks we have on the schedule to race at.”

Byron on mid-week races:
“I’m definitely getting used to us having races coming rapidly around the corner and I really like it. It keeps my brain active and really myself in general. It doesn’t leave me too many days to sit and harp on the previous race or get lax waiting for the next one. I think it’s great to always have another race right around the corner so quickly like we’ve had.”

Byron on the playoff bubble:
“Right now, it’s all about points for us. We have to have a good week every week in terms of stage points and finishes. We need to work on getting back on the other side of the bubble and building back a buffer now. In my mind, you want at least 50 points sitting between you and the cutoff to feel more secure and be able to be more aggressive. We were close to that point a couple weeks ago but the tire issue at Indianapolis and the wreck in Texas really hurt.”

Driver Jimmie Johnson on Kansas Speedway:
“Kansas is one of my favorite tracks we go to. I’m so encouraged as to how we ran at Texas before we had the accident. It (the Ally Chevrolet) was such a rocket. Major kudos to the guys at the shop setting up these cars week in and out for us – without the ability to practice if the cars were way off we would be in big trouble. They are really close every week. Kansas has evolved so much and there is this aging that happens with the racing surfaces on these tracks to with they come into their own after 10 or 15 years and Kansas is now one of those tracks in its ‘prime’. I find it to be one of the most racy and competitive mile and a half tracks we race on right now.”

Driver Alex Bowman on heading to Kansas:
“I am definitely excited to get back to Kansas this week. That track was pretty good to us last year and I still think we should have gotten the win there in the spring. Kansas is pretty similar to Chicago, so I think it sort of fits my driving style. We have had some bad luck here lately and things just haven’t fallen into our hands. Hopefully, we can turn that around on Thursday when we get to a track that I feel really does fit my driving style.”

McDowell on Kansas:

“We have Dockside Logistics back on our No. 34 Ford Mustang this week. They were on the car at Pocono for the double-header weekend and experienced some highs and lows with us when we scored both a Top-10 finish and a DNF. So hopefully we can do a good job for them and keep the momentum of our Ford Mustang rolling on Thursday. We’re coming off of a Top-15 run in Texas and now heading into Kansas, I’m really looking forward to being able to run multiple grooves on the track. It’s also going to be a night race on Thursday, so hopefully it will be a little bit cooler than what it was like in Texas. I encourage everyone to tune in for what should be a really fun race to watch.”

Team: No. 6 Wyndham Rewards Ford Mustang
Crew Chief: Scott Graves
Twitter: @Roush6Team, @RoushFenway and @RyanJNewman
Race Format: 400 miles, 267 laps, Stage Lengths: 80-80-107
Super Start Batteries 400 Presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts – Thursday, July 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90

ADVANCE NOTES

Thursday Night Race on Deck in Kansas

· Just four days after a 500-mile race in Texas, the NASCAR Cup Series stays west for a rare Thursday night event for 400 miles under the lights at Kansas Speedway.

· The first Kansas race was originally scheduled for late May in its typical spring slot, but was moved to summer following scheduling implications from COVID-19. The NCS race will be the first of five races at the 1.5-mile track across the weekend, with the Truck Series set for a doubleheader, and the Xfinity and ARCA Series also on tap.

· The lineup for Sunday’s race will again be determined by a random draw based on teams’ order in owners’ points. Newman and the No. 6 team are 21st in points and will draw for a starting spot in the 13-24 group.

· Four weeks of NASCAR action were completed prior to the COVID-19 hiatus with races at Atlanta, Homestead, Texas, Bristol, Richmond, Talladega, Dover and Martinsville postponed.

Newman Historically at Kansas Speedway

· Newman will make his 29th Cup start at Kansas on Thursday. In 28 prior starts, Newman has an average finish of 19.5 with one win, three top fives and seven top 10s.

· Newman’s win at the 1.5-mile track came back in 2003, a year in which he won eight races. In that race he started 11th and led the final 28 laps, holding off Bill Elliott and Jeremy Mayfield for the victory.

· Prior to the victory in 2003, Newman finished runner-up in each of his first two Cup races at the track (2001, 2002). He also finished inside the top-10 in 2010 (ninth), 2014 (sixth), 2015 (10th) and 2016 (seventh).

· Newman has an average starting position of 13.8 with nine starts inside the top-10.

· He also has one start in the truck series, finishing second after starting fourth in 2015.

Scott Graves at Kansas Speedway

· Graves will call his eighth NCS race at Kansas on Thursday, where he has one top-10 that came in 2017 (seventh). He also finished 11th in his first-ever Cup event at the 1.5-mile track in 2013.

· Graves also called three Xfinity events atop the box, finishing third in 2016 and sixth with Chris Buescher in 2015.

QUOTE WORTHY
Newman on racing at Kansas:
“We’ve been making changes to our 1.5-mile cars recently, and Sunday at Texas we noticed some differences for the better. We’re hoping to continue that trend Thursday night at Kansas, a track that carries a lot of speed and typically creates some high-energy action. A Thursday night points event is rare for us, but looking forward to it and putting on a strong run in the Wyndham Rewards Ford.”

Last Time Out
Newman hung tough through a flurry of late-race cautions, and overcame some early adversity to finish 13th Sunday at Texas.

Where They Rank
Newman is 26th in driver points after 15 points races in his 2020 campaign. In owners’ points, the No. 6 is 21st.

On the Car
Wyndham Rewards returns to the No. 6 for the second consecutive race at Kansas, the brand’s fourth event overall of 2020 as the primary, and third with Newman. Wyndham Rewards is in its third season with the team after joining the fold with Matt Kenseth in 2018, and a 10-race program in 2019 with Newman.

About Wyndham Rewards

Recently named the number one hotel rewards program by readers of USA TODAY, Wyndham Rewards® is the world’s most generous rewards program with more than 30,000 hotels, vacation club resorts and vacation rentals worldwide. Designed for the everyday traveler, members earn a guaranteed 1,000 points with every qualified stay and may redeem points for a wide-range of rewards, including free nights at any of approximately 9,300 hotels or tens of thousands of vacation club resorts and vacation rentals globally through partnership with Wyndham Destinations (NYSE: WYND) and others. Wyndham Rewards has approximately 81 million enrolled members around the globe. Join for free today at www.wyndhamrewards.com. You’ve earned this.®

Team: No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang
Crew Chief: Luke Lambert
Twitter: @17RoushTeam, @RoushFenway and @Chris_Buescher
Race Format: 400 miles, 267 laps, Stage Lengths: 80-80-107
Super Start Batteries 400 Presented by O-Reilly Auto Parts – Thursday, July 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90

ADVANCE NOTES

Thursday Night Race on Deck in Kansas

· Just four days after a 500-mile race in Texas, the NASCAR Cup Series stays west for a rare Thursday night event for 400 miles under the lights at Kansas Speedway.

· The first Kansas race was originally scheduled for late May in its typical spring slot, but was moved to summer following scheduling implications from COVID-19. The NCS race will be the first of five races at the 1.5-mile track across the weekend, with the Truck Series set for a doubleheader, and the Xfinity and ARCA Series also on tap.

· The lineup for Sunday’s race will again be determined by a random draw based on teams’ order in owners’ points. Buescher and the No. 17 team are 22nd in points and will draw for a starting spot in the 13-24 group.

· Four weeks of NASCAR action were completed prior to the COVID-19 hiatus with races at Atlanta, Homestead, Texas, Bristol, Richmond, Talladega, Dover and Martinsville postponed.

Buescher Historically at Kansas Speedway

· Buescher makes his ninth Cup start at Kansas on Thursday, a track where he has an average finish of 17.8 with two top-10 results.

· Buescher’s best result of sixth came back in the 2017 fall race. Most recently, he crossed the line 10th last spring and followed that with a 13th-place run in the fall.

· He also has three Xfinity Series starts at the 1.5-mile track, with a best finish of sixth in 2015 in the No. 60 entry for Jack Roush.

Luke Lambert at Kansas Speedway

· Lambert will call his 15th Cup race at Kansas on Thursday, where he has an average finish of 18.9 with two top 10s.

· Both top-10 results came with Ryan Newman in 2014 (sixth) and 2016 (seventh), in a stretch where Newman finished no worse than 12th in six-straight events from 2013-16.

· Most recently, Lambert let Daniel Hemric to the pole in last fall’s event, adding to his impressive 14.6 average starting position.

· Lambert also called one Xfinity event with Elliott Sadler in 2012, finishing fourth after starting seventh.

QUOTE WORTHY
Buescher on racing at Kansas:
“We’re looking for a big rebound Thursday after a promising start to our day in Texas. Our goal has been to continue to build each week, and we have shown that in spots, so we are looking forward to putting it all together come Thursday. Kansas is a really fast track that I’ve run better at in the past couple events, so looking forward to the challenge in our Fifth Third Ford.”

Last Time Out
Buescher was on pace for a solid finish in Sunday’s race at Texas, earning stage points in the first segment, before becoming the victim of a multi-car incident. Despite the damage, Buescher and the No. 17 team fought in the closing laps to finish 19th.

Where They Rank
Buescher is 20th in driver points through 18 events.

On the Car
Fifth Third Bank makes its fourth appearance aboard Buescher’s No. 17 Ford Thursday in Kansas.

About Fifth Third Bank
Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the indirect parent company of Fifth Third Bank, National Association, a federally chartered institution. As of March 31, 2020, Fifth Third had $185 billion in assets and operated 1,123 full-service banking centers and 2,464 ATMs with Fifth Third branding in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina. In total, Fifth Third provides its customers with access to approximately 53,000 fee-free ATMs across the United States. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending and Wealth & Asset Management. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of March 31, 2020, had $374 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $42 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations through its Trust and Registered Investment Advisory businesses. Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Fifth Third’s common stock is traded on the Nasdaq® Global Select Market under the symbol “FITB.” Fifth Third Bank was established in 1858. Deposit and Credit products are offered by Fifth Third Bank, National Association. Member FDIC.

Kansas Thursday 7:30 ET on NBCSN

July 21, 2020

After strong back-to-back runs on intermediate-length tracks at Kentucky and Texas, Matt DiBenedetto and the Menards/Dutch Boy team are headed to another mile-and-a-half track looking to capitalize again on the speed of the No. 21 Wood Brothers Mustang.

DiBenedetto finished third at Kentucky and was poised for another top-five finish at Texas only to be collected in a late-race incident. Next up is Thursday night’s Super Start Batteries 400 at Kansas Speedway.

“I like Kansas better than the other intermediate tracks,” DiBenedetto said. “You can move around more. There’s not really a preferred lane, even though the top can be better at times.

“You can go to any groove, and that makes the racing better.”

DiBenedetto said the pavement at Kansas has aged well since it was redone in 2012.

“That pavement makes the racing better,” he said. “The surface is a little slicker, and the lap times fall off during a run, which makes it more enjoyable.”

Still, he said, it’s important to be up front as much as possible, to capitalize on the aerodynamic advantage that comes with racing in clean air.

With just eight races remaining before the start of the Cup Series playoffs, DiBenedetto and the Menards/Dutch Boy team are currently in 12th place in points and among the 16 teams that will start the 10-race, season-ending run to the championship.

But recent events have made a Playoff berth more of a challenge.

Two drivers who were below DiBenedetto in the Playoff standings, Cole Custer and Austin Dillon, won the past two races and took two of the guaranteed berths.

“Those guys winning bumped us back and put us in a little more uncomfortable position,” he said. “But our Menards/ Dutch Boy team deserves to be in the Playoffs. We’ve had fast cars consistently run in the top five and top 10.

“If we can keep than up the rest will take care of itself.”

There will be no practice or qualifying for Thursday night’s 400-mile race, which is set to get the green flag just after 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time with TV coverage on NBCSN.

Menards

A family owned company started in 1958, Menards is headquartered in Eau Claire, WI.  Menards has more than 300 retail stores located throughout the Midwest in the states of IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, SD, WI and WY.  Menards is known throughout the home improvement industry as the low price leader.  It’s famous slogan “Save Big Money at Menards” is widely known and easy to remember.  For more information, visit Menards.com, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.

Wood Brothers Racing

Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the Wood Brothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Matt DiBenedetto in the famous No. 21 racer.

NASCAR CUP SERIES

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2020

CLINT BOWYER MEDIA TELECONFERENCE

CLINT BOWYER, No. 14 Ford Mustang — HOW EXCITED ARE YOU TO BE AT KANSAS SPEEDWAY SOON? “Well, first of all, can you see my Ford hat? It is almost as cool as that Royals hat I see. I am really looking forward to getting back home. Obviously Texas we got a decent finish but not nearly where we need to be. To be honest, the way these draws, the random draw for just the top-12, thinking back to Talladega, that one last lap right there where we got in a wreck flipped positions with my teammate Aric Almirola. Boy, if I would have known then the difference that would have made a couple months later I probably wouldn’t have made that move. It has been a constant battle trying to dig ourselves out of a hole. The way that the draw is for the top-12 it basically just protects those guys and makes it virtually impossible for anybody outside of that to capitalize on that first stage which puts them in a really good position points wise for the rest of the race. Furthermore, it puts you in a situation to have to try to gamble either at the tail end of that first stage or throughout that second stage to try to capitalize off some points whether it be that second stage or set yourself up for the end of the race. Anytime you go to gamble we all know that it can either win or lose big. Nine times out of 10 the house wins from what I can see. So, I am kind of frustrated in a sense that I feel like over the last month and a half we have had a lot better runs than our stats show. Again, just constantly digging yourself out of a hole because of the way we start these races has been a challenge. Very, very challenging as a matter of fact. Going back to Kansas, I always love going back there. Obviously it is going to be drastically different not having fans. That is what put this sport on the map. That is what has kept it on the map all these years and without that, it is just a void that can’t be replaced. Are we putting a product on the race track? Yes. Are there people at home watching? Yes, the ratings show that and these are the things keeping us alive and relevant. I think the rest of the sporting world is fixin’ to see first hand just like we have experienced in the last few months the difference and challenges and impact of not having that fan presence there. It isn’t just the presence, it is the atmosphere and your event. Without that it isn’t quite the event that it could be or should be or would be.”

SCOTT MILLER SAID IF THERE ISN’T QUALIFYING BY THE PLAYOFFS, THEN THE SANCTIONING BODY MAY ALTER HOW THE STARTING LINEUPS ARE SET, AND HE CONFIRMED NO PRACTICE OR QUALIFYING THROUGH DOVER INCLUDING DAYTONA ROAD COURSE. DO YOU HAVE A THOUGHT ON THAT? “I voted to practice at Daytona. I mean, I guess I’m probably unique since at least I have some laps on the racetrack. It was a long time ago. I don’t even remember those laps, but I ran the Rolex 24

and have some experience on that track. But that being said, not in our cars, anything else I think it’s tall order to to show up there and to run a track that we’ve never been on before with a tire combination with the package, you know the aero, horsepower, everything we’ve never even seen before it’s it’s gonna be a crapshoot for everybody. I think there’s definitely drivers and teams that have experience of running at Rolex that will be ahead of the pack ahead of the curve. For sure. But, you know, these are challenging times. To ask the team to come up with a unique car again for a backup car and everything else. I mean, it’s saving them money, I get it, everything’s tight right now. So, you’ve got to give and take in this scenario, and I think that’s definitely a give for the Daytona race. I was actually shocked to hear you say that about Scott Miller and the starting procedures. I mean, that was just my complaint going in. But that just shows you that there’s some validity to that thought process. I mean, it’s literally every single time you start the race, you’re behind the eight ball.

Not only are you behind the eight ball, you’re behind the eight ball of cars that are capable of winning races. I mean, there’s a reason they’re up front. But it’s in a situation right now where you’re protecting those fastest cars on the racetrack. And if I’m a promoter and got my promoter hat on, I wouldn’t think that that would be necessarily the best case scenario to put on a great race for fans, you know, the more you shake those starts up, the better off. Whether I watch my dirt late models compete, modifieds, whatever the case may be all over the country. There’s inversions and things like that and that’s a product of putting a product on the racetrack but I have no idea why. I don’t know why. Why the hell would we wait till the playoffs if we have a problem and we see it? Why would you wait to the playoffs to change it? You know that’s my frustration with a lot of things. If I’m running something and I know that I have a problem, I’m not going to wait weeks to fix it. I’m going to fix it now.”

BRAD KESELOWSKI TALKED ABOUT AND WAS PRETTY OUT THERE ABOUT THE FACT AFTER THE QUINN SITUATION THIS PAST WEEKEND, HE’D LIKE TO BE ABLE TO SEE DRIVERS GRADUATE INTO THIS LEVEL AND EQUALLY BE ABLE TO SEE THEM REMOVED FROM THIS LEVEL. DID YOU HEARD THOSE COMMENTS? WHAT DO YOU THINK? “Well, I think the graduate process is definitely a thing that we’ve always had. Right? We’ve always had graduation processes. But that being said, some of its getting lax, you know, with putting cars on the racetrack and business reasons you’re putting people on the racetrack that you wouldn’t have 10 to 15 years ago. And that isn’t an excuse, that shouldn’t be the case. Just because you have money or whatever else, you shouldn’t be able to just buy your way onto the racetrack. And I’m not saying that whoever that was, had that happen. But nonetheless we’ve been doing this, what, 15 years or so. I know my competitors on that racetrack. And every year there’s a new one or a couple new ones and I know what I’m up against. I don’t like having guys that just show up and race every now and then at this level of racing. That’s not right. You don’t just show up and line up against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. You shouldn’t be able to do that against Stewart Haas Racing or Joe Gibbs Racing or anything else. That’s not a knock to them.

I don’t necessarily agree. I think if you do a good job with your graduation process of graduating, I don’t think you have to worry about ever knocking anybody down. I guess that’s my point and that is his need to do a better job of making sure we’ve got the right guys on the racetrack and if you do a good job at that, you’ll never have to remove them.”

HAVE YOU STARTED TALKING TO STUART HOUSE YET ABOUT NEXT YEAR OR IS WITH EVERYTHING THAT’S JUST BEEN GOING ON AND THE WAY IT’S MADE RACES AS YOU’RE DOING THAT? ALL THAT STUFF’S GETTING PUSHED GONNA BE PUSHED LATER AND LATER THAN NORMAL? “No, I haven’t really talked to them much about it. I’ve been talking to partners and things like that and just trying to do everything that I can do to make sure that all the things are lined up for next year for them. I mean, that’s what I can do … we’ve got to, I’ve got to do a better job inside the race car, we got to do a better job of getting this 14 car back up front where it belongs. Doesn’t matter what you do outside the car if you’re not taken care of what is in the car, you shouldn’t be in any of them. Stewart-Haas is a wonderful organization. I want to be there. I want to retire there and and I love the opportunity and the people behind it. I believe all the pieces of the puzzle are there. The manufacturer in Ford, I mean, we’re sitting here representing Ford today and you couldn’t ask for a better manufacturer that’s invested in the sport the way they are. I just again, it’s a perfect fit for me. We started off really, really well. Started the front side of this pandemic well. We’ve run into some bumps in the road. And honestly, I hate to say it, I can almost pinpoint it on Talladega. You put it on Talladega and flip that over. And the next two months have been drastically different because of that, literally, every time we start the race we’re behind. And you’re behind cars that are hard to catch up with. If those guys hang, you know, 8 to 10 points of stage points on you. It’s a bit virtually impossible. You’ve got to do something then to try to differentiate yourself and nine times out of 10 the way that these races are, things don’t work out. Then you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t on a strategy call. You know, three weeks in a row, we were running in a single digit and look to have an easy single digit finish. And two top fives out of that the caution comes out a couple laps after you pit and the rest is history. You end up 15th to 20th. I mean it’s that fast it can change. But again it was a gamble because we were trying to catch up so anyway. To answer your question I really haven’t talked about it but you know, I’m more worried about soon as you get down here getting down to the shop.

“I’m going to go down actually and you know, get with my guys and right now it’s just everybody’s it’s very challenging under these times with the pandemic to get in the shop to work with one another you know, no practice Bob. Hell, we are new to this year together with John and all my guys, we’re trying to figure each other out. I mean, we stubbed our toe bad yesterday in Texas, but you unload and you’re laying in the bed you made. I looked at our pictures. Crew sent me some pictures this morning of our car and it was like oh boy, you know. I was floating the nose really bad off it to all the right front was putting air and the left front was dragging the ground. I was getting it three and four and it was on the splitter and it was floating the nose off of two. Again, those little minute things that make up the difference. And then with no practice, you don’t have an opportunity to fix any of those.”

COMING BACK TO KANSAS SPEEDWAY YOU USUALLY HAVE A PACKED ITINERARY WITH FAMILY FRIENDS BARBECUE ROYALS GAME. OBVIOUSLY IT’S GOING TO BE DIFFERENT BUT WHAT’S IT GOING TO BE LIKE FOR YOU COMING BACK TO KANSAS SPEEDWAY UNDER THIS PANDEMIC UMBRELLA? “Always exciting to go back home, it’s home. I mean, it’s literally that way. I mean we all experienced that a lot of people move away from home, going to college chasing their dreams, get a job, whatever. It’s always fun to go back home and see things and for me, having family now and having kids it’s fun for me kind of like I did with my parents to go back and see them and show them something about where you came from. That being said Kansas City kicks ass. It just does and I’m not saying that as far as pride of being from Kansas I mean I can anybody in the garage area goes to Kansas City and every single one of them are blowing up your phone I mean, where’s the hotspot where’s the barbecue joint to go to? It’s like, dude, all of them. All of them are knocking it out of the park and you know the power and light district and the sporting, I mean, it’s you can’t ask for a better time to be in any city than right now in Kansas City. And you know, the track, I’ve said time and time again, so proud of … we talk about the puzzle in our sport and all pieces of the puzzle have to come together. I mean just look at the impact in Wyandotte county when they put that piece of the puzzle at Kansas Speedway in there. Awesome part of town and going from Lakeside Speedway growing up over there and racing over there. So proud to call that place home and to see what’s happened because of that. Met so many good friends over the years and you know, just had a good winter. I saw Mahomes and Kelce over to Lake and got with them a day and had fun with them. And, you know, Eric Stonestreet got a new place over there and sent me pictures. Who would ever thought he’d enjoy fishing and everything he’s been doing on his lake. It is just a really good place to be from and to enjoy and looking forward to bringing in our sport there once again. Another thing about it is I think that the city embraces our sport well. When I go across the country, part of that’s our doing and and on us to be able to promote our sport and do that, but honestly, if you have something and you’re valid and relevant, the city embraces that and I see a lot of NASCAR when we come into town.”

DO YOU KEEP IN TOUCH WITH NED (YOST) AT ALL? “You know, I haven’t talked to Ned in a while and that’s my fault. You know, in every conversation with Ned is just like no other. The man is full of wisdom and always has something bright to say. The way I’m racing right now, that’s exactly what I’m doing. And I’m gonna call old Ned this week. Get a rah rah speech. Get my ass up off the plank here and off the bench and get me in the game. That’s what I need.”

HOW EXCITED ARE YOU TO GO BACK TO MICHIGAN HAVE THE DOUBLEHEADER AND EVERYTHING THERE UNIQUE YOU LEARN FROM AT POCONO AND WHAT YOU FEEL LIKE YOU LEARNED THERE THAT YOU COULD BRING INTO MICHIGAN IN TWO WEEKS? “Definitely looking forward to Michigan. Fast racetrack and when you talk about a fast racetrack you need fast hot rods and in our Ford Mustangs have been extremely fast up there. You know that Roush Yates horsepower is second to none when you’re talking about up on the pipe baby, and that track keeps it up there. You know, you’re just you never barely lift out of the gas. You are sailing around that place and I look for that track to be a track that we can contend for a win and get back in the right swing of things for these stage points. As bad as the race last week was, I gained some points on a 21 car and got a little closer to the 13th place. I look for a place like Michigan, Kansas this Thursday, I’ve got to get myself back in this top 12 if they’re not going to change the rules, you got to get back in the top 12 and get back in the swing of things so you can compete with these guys.”

OBVIOUSLY AFTER YOUR WIN THERE TWO YEARS AGO LAST YEAR WAS A LITTLE BIT OF STRUGGLE AT MICHIGAN ITSELF. DO YOU LOOK AT THIS YEAR AS MAYBE LIKE A LITTLE BIT OF A REDEMPTION TOUR TO TRY TO GET THE WIN? “Yeah, I mean, we’ve proven that we can do that. Our Ford Mustangs have been fast there. I think they’ll be fast again. It’s all about track position on these. God I hope they don’t bring this tire that we ran at Texas and Kentucky, but they probably will. And if they do, I’m going to have to get track position. Oh, by the way, we won’t have it when we start. Hopefully we can get it at Kansas and we won’t have to worry about that. But if not, we’re gonna have to gain it, gonna have to gamble somehow and rely on that to get to track position and hold on to it.”

WHAT IS THE SOLUTION OR WHAT’S YOUR IDEA IN MAKING THE DRAW BETTER OR HOW THE STARTING LINEUP IS DETERMINED? IS IT AN INVERSION WITH FASTEST LAP FROM THE PREVIOUS RACE? IS IT MAKING THE DRAW ONE THROUGH 16 BECAUSE THAT’S PLAYOFF NUMBERS? WHAT IS A BETTER IDEA THAN WHAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING NOW IN YOUR MIND? “I honestly think one through 20 would shake the race up well, and that puts me in a situation where I could start 20th. That’s not necessarily just putting it out there that it’s going to make my day better selfishly for me. I think that’s what the sport means. I think we’re putting our best cars right up front in the clean air on racetracks where we know that that’s important. I’m frustrated with this tire that we have. I think we all are and we’re protecting those guys. I think a one through 20 would probably be well. I saw that come up just like we all did. A fan actually had that idea of the week previous fastest lap but the problem with that, and I love the idea and that that mentality is phenomenal and I appreciate that fan for bringing that to the table. It’s a great idea. The problem with that is I can tell you who’s going to have the fastest lap. The guy in the lead when in the cleanest air. So that being said, again, it’s ] not going to shake the race up and in my opinion that’s what we need to do. The cream will rise to the top. The best teams will and if you can shake them up week in and week out in this scenario with no practice and everything else it will shake your environment up and make for a better race. I one hundred percent believe that.”

YOU RACE THURSDAY NIGHT SO YOU GET SUNDAY OFF. IN NORMAL TIMES A WEEKEND OFF FOR A DRIVER WOULD BE A BIG THING. BUT IN THESE TIMES WHAT DO YOU DO? WHAT DO YOU DO ON SUNDAY? HOW MUCH DOES IT MATTER TO HAVE THIS WEEKEND OFF? “Dude, scrambling. Literally scrambling. My wife is on me non stop. What are we doing? And my plan man, you get an idea and go down that path and that doesn’t work. I’ve been going over the lake a lot and I enjoy that. But it’s like, I want to go somewhere different, I want to take my family somewhere. The kids are fixin to go back to school or whatever the heck that’s going to look like. It’s just hard, you know. Camping. I love to camp, you know, we camp every weekend anyway. And it’s kind of funny to say, oh, let’s take the bus and go camp somewhere. We were going to do that. Good luck finding a campground somewhere you can get into to do that. I would say we’ll probably end up back over at the lake. It makes the most sense. It’s two hours from Kansas City or three hours drive over there, but who knows? We’re trying to figure it out. That’s a great question. And that’s a question that when my eyes woke up this morning, she was staring at me saying what are we doing this weekend? I still don’t have an answer.”

YOU’VE TALKED ABOUT POINTS IN TERMS OF THE DRAW, BUT WE’VE HAD TWO SURPRISE WINNERS OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS. SO IN TERMS OF THE PLAYOFFS, HOW MUCH ARE YOU LOOKING AT POINTS? “Yeah, you’re looking at points. You’re always looking at points. They both did a great job of holding on to their clean air. You know what I mean? I’m a little .. hell, you’re jealous. That’s what you are. I wish I got strategy and a caution would have come out put me in the lead and been able to hold on to the win and not have to worry about it anymore. I mean it’s as simple as that. I mean they were decent cars but they weren’t leading lap cars, you put them in the lead and they drove off. Both of them.”

IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU’RE MORE INCLINED TO RETURN TO STEWART-HAAS RACING NEXT YEAR THEN MAYBE PURSUE OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OUTSIDE OF RACING. IS THAT CORRECT? “I’m a race car driver man. I love doing the broadcasts and things like that but you know, I think that time will come and I don’t know when that’ll be. I want to race and I want to be in a race car. I love competing. I love being pissed off at the end of the race. I love being happy at the end of the race. I love that adrenaline of lining up next to that guy and wondering how in the hell you’re going to come off the turn two ahead of him and that’s a feeling that can’t be replaced. That being said, I feel like I really have appreciated the relationship with Fox this year. I feel like that’s something. It’s not up to me whether that happens or not. It’s a ton of fun, I can tell you that. I mean, it’s relatively easy for me. I mean, everybody always asked how do you get up and do that? I mean, I don’t know. Let me get this straight, you want me to go up there and bench race with a bunch of my buddies and talk racing about a race like, like I’ve done since I was four years old at the dinner table? That’s what you want me to go do? Yeah, I got that, I can handle that. It is a ton of fun and I have a huge amount of respect for everybody that puts on the production of our sports and then you start looking at production when you watch a football game or a baseball game differently. Once you know how that you know product comes to play and what we see on television it’s a whole different respect for all the individuals that make that happen. From the cameraman to the producers. The lead guy like Adam, Alexander and Mike Joy, those guys are just crazy talented. They keep these maniacs that grew up racing and talk racing and doing that bench racing like we do up there, for those guys to get up there and to control all of that and to make that go smooth as silk is just amazing. So yeah, I appreciate that. And hopefully, that opportunity will come someday. I don’t know when that day will be.”

ALL THINGS BEING EQUAL. YOU’D LIKE TO BE BACK IN THE CAR THOUGH? “Yeah, hell yeah, who wouldn’t?”

WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR PERFORMANCE THIS YEAR YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU GUYS HAVE COME CLOSE ESPECIALLY WHEN IT WAS RIGHT AFTER THE PANDEMIC. HOW FAR OFF ARE YOU GUYS FROM GETTING BACK IN VICTORY LANE?

“Looks like one timely caution. That’s a terrible smart aleck answer. I’m in a bad mood dammit. I had a bad finish and had a bad day yesterday. I got home, went to feed cows and bought some new heifers and I had two of them through the fence and over I’ve been chasing cows all morning long. I’m in a bad mood. I’m on the wrong side of the pillow right now. Down on sleep. Bad Day. Damn cows are out. That was not a good answer. I feel like we could win anytime if we can get in position. I feel like our team is plenty capable of getting the job done.”

YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU’RE WATCHING POINTS. DO YOU FEEL THAT IT IS MUST WIN THAT YOU NEED TO GET A WIN IN THESE NEXT EIGHT RACES TO LOCK UP A PLAYOFF SPOT? “No, no, we just got to go and compete the way we’re capable of competing. We stubbed our toe yesterday. We weren’t very good. We missed our set up. And you know, with our tools and everything that we have at our disposal at Stewart-Haas Racing we probably shouldn’t have done that. We should have ran better than we did. But nonetheless, we were able to get it all wrangled back together. I mean, we were a lap down at a pretty dangerous time of the race. Got that back and got tore up with the damage. I was lucky. I got in the back of the 24 on that wreck and the front and knocked the grill in. We had to cut the grille. I think you guys saw the leaf blower in my car and was like, is he overheating. Be honest with you he was blowing it in the grill. That thing was like 320 yesterday, which doesn’t even register on like if your automobile ever overheats. By the way your gauge would never get to 320. The only reason ours do is they’re digital. I’m like, Oh boy, hey guys, this thing’s like nuclear meltdown right now so we got to come in. He was cutting the grill out and he was running that leaf blower in the in the ductwork because when I hit it smashed all the ductwork and it wasn’t getting any air to the radiator so that’s what he was doing. That guy was cutting the ductwork out of it so the radiator could get some air and I guess I don’t even know why he did it. He walked by and stuck that leaf blower inside the car. Let me tell you something, I wasn’t gonna complain about it. Wasn’t gonna shoo him away cuz it felt good.

Just coming back from all that adversity and everything elseI think we finished 11th which was probably pretty lucky given the circumstances that we were in.”

THE ROAD TO THE INDYCAR SERIES HAS THIS LADDER SYSTEM WHERE IF YOU WIN THELOWEST LEVEL YOU MOVE ON AND SO ON ALL THE WAY TO A GUARANTEED SPOT IN THE INDY 500. SO BASICALLY, IT’S LIKE IF YOU WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP IN ONE OF THOSE SERIES, YOU MOVE ON TO THE NEXT LEVEL. DO YOU THINK NASCAR SHOULD DO THAT WITH ARCA, TRUCKS, XFINITY AND THEN CUP? “Well, that being said, Kurt Busch ran an Indy 500. There have been other instances. I mean, I don’t know that they have a better stepping platform than NASCAR has. That jas always been in play for my whole career. I’ve felt comfortable with who’s on the racetrack. The last probably two years, we’re starting to see guys that we don’t know. And it’s unfortunate because it’s not just solely pinned on them. You know, given the pandemic with no practice and things like that. If that’s gonna be a challenge for any race team it would be their teams, right? Those guys are the ones that probably need to practice the most because they don’t have the ultra high tech simulation and everything we have to make sure that our gaps are exactly right. How many times you ever seen anybody put packer in their cars anymore? I mean, those are things that when we first started that and simulation was kind of shaky that you would do constantly, right? And practice. Those guys are the ones that are doing that during the race and everything now so not only are they probably down on experience, they’re in a car that’s a handful as well. My biggest pet peeve with those guys is they’ll give you — that kid he’s probably one of the worst ones — he’ll give you a finger out the window to the inside well then he’ll drive it in in the middle of the track and won’t give you any room and you get loose underneath of him and wreck. Hey man, if you are going to give somebody the bottom, give them the bottom. You know what they need to do is when you give somebody the bottom, you give them the corner. You lift before the corner and give them the corner. That’s stuff that we had rookie meetings and a veteran driver came in and told those guys. I don’t know if they’re still doing that for those guys, but they should. They’re not doing the things that we were told to do as rookies to be respectful for those guys on the racetrack. It’s not up to me to decide whether those guys belong on the racetrack or not and, quite frankly not up to me to decide if they’re qualified or not. We have a sanctioning body and they need to make sure that who we’re racing against on the racetrack has the appropriate credentials. I don’t know what those guys do or not. And I don’t know that. That’s the God’s honest truth.”

DOES THE SRS SERIES INTRIGUE YOU THAT TONY STEWART AND RAY EVERNHAM ARE PUTTING RAN TOGETHER? “What is it? No, I don’t know. I like short tracks. I don’t know anything about it. I will tell you that I got an education this morning. Just take all your cows for the sale and get out of the cow business. It sucks. They make good lawn mowers, though. I will say that. You can either spend your time chasing cows back to the fences or you can spend your time in a tractor all day long mowing fields. Its kinda take your pick.

I don’t feel like I answered any of these questions appropriately. I wasn’t prepared. I’ve been drinking water because I’ve been walking. I’ve already put in about four miles this morning chasing damn cows. I got poop all over my legs. It hasn’t been very good. You see all these kids falling out of the cars yesterday? Dropping and flopping? Come on man. These cars are hot. We got to get them cooled down somehow. I was riding, unfortunately I picked the plane ride with Austin Dillon. So I had to go home last night and I was happy for him but there’s nothing worse than having a bad day and have to get on a plane to somebody that had a great day. I had a beer with him. I took my licks. I was happy for him. He did a good job. But him and Kurt (Busch) both of those wusses. You can’t win a race and go to the infield care center to take IV’s. Here I am waiting on him with some cold beer to celebrate. And they’re in the infield care center with IV hooked to them. Bunch of sissy’s. Hey, why don’t you all go out and buy you a Ford today. Go drive one. Have a good day.”