Category: NASCAR Cup PR

NASCAR Cup Series
Next Race: Daytona 500
The Place: Daytona International Speedway
The Date: Sunday, February 16
The Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
TV: FOX, 2 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 500 miles (200 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 65),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 130), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200)
2019 Race Winner: Denny Hamlin

NASCAR Xfinity Series
Next Race: NASCAR Racing Experience 300
The Place: Daytona International Speedway
The Date: Saturday, February 15
The Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
TV: FS1, 2 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 300 miles (120 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 120)
2019 Race Winner: Michael Annett

NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
Next Race: NextEra Energy 250
The Place: Daytona International Speedway
The Date: Friday, February 14
The Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: FS1, 7 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 250 miles (100 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 20),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 40), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 100)
2019 Winner: Austin Hill

NASCAR Cup Series

Do it again, Denny!

Last year’s emotional win of the NASCAR Cup Series season-opening Daytona 500 was the start of an exciting and noteworthy season. Denny Hamlin, who won the historic race once before in 2016, did it again – but this time in honor of team owner Joe Gibbs’ late son J.D. Gibbs. J.D. was a big part of Hamlin’s life and career, but lost his battle with a neurological illness the month in January of 2019.

The win was the first of a career-high six on the season for Hamlin. He finished the 2019 season with 19 top fives, 24 top 10s and three pole awards. He automatically locked into the Playoffs with his win and went on to continue his run all the way to the Championship 4.

The season was also one to remember for the Joe Gibbs Racing team. Three of their four drivers made it into the Championship 4, with Kyle Busch winning the season-ending trophy. The team won a combined, record-setting 19 wins in 2019.

Hamlin has two wins at the 2.5-mile superspeedway with eight top fives and nine top 10s.

Hamlin and seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson are the only two active drivers to have won two Daytona 500 races, and only three drivers in series history have ever won back-to-back Daytona 500 events (Sterling Marlin – 1994, 1995; Cale Yarborough – 1983-1984; Richard Petty – 1973, 1974).

There would likely be a pretty big party at Daytona if Hamlin were able to become the fourth.

Sunoco Rookie of the Year class outlook

This season marks one of the most highly anticipated Sunoco Rookie of the Year classes.

Tyler Reddick, two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series champion, made the jump to the Cup Series with Richard Childress Racing and will pilot the No. 8 Chevrolet.

Cole Custer, two-time runner-up in the Xfinity Series championship standings, will compete for Stewart-Haas Racing in the No. 41.

Christopher Bell, one of the winningest drivers in the Xfinity Series in recent years, will be behind the wheel of the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota in 2020.

John Hunter Nemechek took over the No. 36 Front Row Motorsports Ford for Matt Tifft at the end of the 2019 season after he suffered health issues and then ended up signing with the team fulltime for 2020.

Quin Houff will be making his rookie debut in the No. 00 StarCom Racing Chevrolet.

Brennan Poole will pilot the No. 15 Premium Motorsports Chevrolet in 2020 and will make his Cup Series debut at Daytona.

Seven drivers in NASCAR Cup Series history secured their career-first victory with a win in the Daytona 500. Could a rookie be the one to do it?

Drivers

Seasons

Tiny Lund

1963

Mario Andretti

1967

Pete Hamilton

1970

Derrike Cope

1990

Sterling Marlin

1994

Michael Waltrip

2001

Trevor Bayne

2011

With a stacked rookie class that showed so much talent and took the Xfinity Series by storm, Sunday’s Daytona 500 might be one for the records.

Who gets it done first?

Aside from the rookies this season in the NASCAR Cup Series, there are still some drivers that have yet to get their first career win.

William Byron has come close multiple times but hasn’t been able to get it done. Byron started on the pole in the 2019 Daytona 500 and got his career-best finish at the track in the July race in second. And he’s had a great 2020 Speedweeks – winning the second BlueGreen Vacation Duel on Thursday night – his first trip to Victory Lane with legendary crew chief Chad Knaus.

Matt DiBendetto has a lot of momentum on his side, too. DiBenedetto and Leavine Family Racing parted ways after the 2019 season and DiBenedetto signed with the famous Wood Brothers Racing team to pilot the No. 21 Ford. He’s come close to a win multiple times, too, and has shown his talent week in and week out. A first win for him isn’t too far off, either.

Bubba Wallace is another driver looking for his first career win and Daytona is a very good place for the driver of the famed No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet. In 2018, Wallace finished runner-up in the Daytona 500 – one of his most memorable career moments to date.

New team, new results

Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who made the move from Roush Fenway Racing to JTG Daugherty Racing in the offseason, won the Busch Pole Award for Sunday’s Daytona 500.

This is Stenhouse’s third career pole. His second pole, which came at Talladega Superspeedway in 2017, led to his first career victory. Stenhouse had never won a pole at the famed Daytona International Speedway prior to last weekend.

Stenhouse is making his 16th start at Daytona on Sunday. He has one win at the track (2017) and two top fives, three top 10s and has led 97 laps.

With the motivation of a new team and a whole lot to prove, Stenhouse might be able to pull off a major victory for himself and his small team in JTG Daugherty Racing.

The Daytona 500 has been won from the pole position nine times; a winning percentage of 14.7 percent.

Season

Driver

1962

Fireball Roberts

1966

Richard Petty

1968

Cale Yarborough

1980

Buddy Baker

1984

Cale Yarborough

1985

Bill Elliott

1987

Bill Elliott

1999

Jeff Gordon

2000

Dale Jarrett

There have been a total of 43 different drivers to have won a pole for the 500 and only seven of those 43 drivers are active this weekend.

The pole position is the most important starting position in the Daytona 500 field, producing more winners than any other position (nine). Sixteen of the 61 Daytona 500s have been won from the front row.

But, Stenhouse will have to reverse recent history to make it to Victory Lane for the second time from pole.

It’s been 20 years since a pole winner won the race. Dale Jarrett won the pole and the Daytona 500 in 2000. And the last top-five finish in the race for a pole-winner was Bill Elliott back in 2001 when he finished fifth.

Bowman back up front

While Ricky Stenhouse Jr. leads the field to green on Sunday, Alex Bowman will be right beside him on the front row. The Hendrick Motorsports driver earned his third consecutive front-row starting position in the 500.

In fact, in all three of his Daytona 500 starts since joining Hendrick Motorsports for the 2018 season, he has started on the front row. He earned the Busch Pole Award in 2018 and last season, he started second.

In general, Hendrick Motorsports tends to be extremely hot at Daytona.

Hendrick Motorsports has won 13 Daytona 500 poles, the series-most, and won a record five Daytona 500 poles in a row (2015-2019).

Jimmie Johnson, who announced that he will be retiring at the end of the 2020 season, has three wins at Daytona with 12 top fives, 16 top 10s and two pole awards.

He is responsible for 83 of the fastest laps run and has 4,225 quality passes to lead the series. Johnson, along with Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch lead all active Cup Series drivers in Daytona 500 starts with 18.

Johnson won the Cup Series championship twice in the same season that he won the Daytona 500 (2006, 2013).

Winners on winners on winners

There are only seven active Daytona 500 winners set to hit the track for Sunday’s 62nd running of the historic race. They are Denny Hamlin (two wins), Jimmie Johnson (two wins), Austin Dillon (one win), Joey Logano (one win), Kevin Harvick (one win), Kurt Busch (one win) and Ryan Newman (one win).

Richard Petty leads the series all-time in Daytona 500 victories with seven. The NASCAR Hall of Famer won in 1964, 1966, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979, and 1981.

The youngest Daytona 500 winner is Trevor Bayne. He won at 20 years old in 2011 and Bobby Allison is the oldest Daytona 500 winner. He won in 1988 at 50 years old.

Five reigning NASCAR Cup Series champions have gone on to win the Daytona 500 the season after winning the championship. Lee Petty in 1959, Richard Petty in 1973, Cale Yarborough in 1977, Jeff Gordon in 1999 and Dale Jarrett, most recently, in 2000.

Five drivers have also gone on to win the championship in the same season they won the Daytona 500.

Drivers

Seasons

Richard Petty

1964

1971

1974

1979

Jimmie Johnson

2006

2013

Lee Petty

1959

Cale Yarborough

1977

Jeff Gordon

1997

Six times in history the winner of the Busch Clash at Daytona has gone on to win the Daytona 500 the following weekend.

1982: Bobby Allison
1987: Bill Elliott
1996, 2000: Dale Jarrett

1997: Jeff Gordon
2016: Denny Hamlin

FYI: Stats to know for the Daytona 500

Dale Earnhardt leads the list of all-time Duel winners with 12. Of active drivers, Denny Hamlin leads the list with three.

Kyle Busch has the best driver rating (91.2) at Daytona but has never won the 500.

A total of 554 different drivers have competed in at least one Daytona 500 and 334 have competed in more than one.

Chase Elliott leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series in average starting position in the Daytona 500 at 6.0 and he became the youngest Daytona 500 pole winner at the age of 20 in 2016.

The Daytona 500 race record is held by Buddy Baker from 1980 (177.602 mph, 02:48:55).

The Wood Brothers have won 15 races at Daytona, more than any other organizations.
A total of 65 different drivers have won at Daytona International Speedway.

NASCAR Xfinity Series

Daytona International Speedway sets the stage for Xfinity’s 2020 season opener

The 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series season is upon us and Daytona International Speedway is all set to host this weekend’s NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at 2:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Daytona International Speedway has hosted 56 NASCAR Xfinity Series races (1982-2019) producing 41 different pole winners and 31 different race winners.

Richard Childress Racing’s Tyler Reddick won the pole for the NASCAR Xfinity Series season opener at Daytona last season and JR Motorsport’s Michael Annett won the race.

Close Xfinity Series finishes are the norm at Daytona

Ever since the inception of electronic scoring in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 1996, close finishes of less than a second have been the norm at Daytona International Speedway.

Since 1996, the Xfinity Series has competed at Daytona 42 times. 31 of the races ended under green and all 31 finished with a margin of victory of less than a second; including the closest finish in NASCAR national series history (0.0004 second) in the 2018 Xfinity season opener.

Below are the last five margins of victory in the season-opening race at Daytona:

Margin of Victory

Race Winner

Runner-Up

Date

0.1160

Michael Annett

Justin Allgaier

February 16, 2019

0.0004

Tyler Reddick

Elliott Sadler

February 17, 2018

0.2180

Ryan Reed

Kasey Kahne

February 25, 2017

0.0430

Chase Elliott

Joey Logano

February 20, 2016

0.0890

Ryan Reed

Chris Buescher

February 21, 2015

Stealing Wins: Late race passes happen at Daytona

Unpredictability. That’s what comes to mind when you think of the finishes at Daytona International Speedway, especially as of late in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Last-lap passes for the win have happened in the closing laps of the last six season-opening races at Daytona; including two on the last lap:

2014: Regan Smith passed Brad Keselowski on the last lap to win by just 0.013 second.

2015: Ryan Reed passed Brad Keselowski on the last lap to win by just 0.089 second.

2016: Chase Elliott passed Joey Logano and led the last 14 laps to win by a scant 0.043 second.

2017: Ryan Reed passed Brad Keselowski with two laps to go to take the checkered flag and the victory by a mere 0.218 second.

2018: Tyler Reddick took the lead with what turned out to be 11 laps to go in NASCAR Overtime and then held off the field for two more overtime restarts (for five total overtime restarts in the race) to win the closest race in NASCAR history (0.0004 second).

2019: Michael Annett took the lead on the final restart with 45 laps to go and held off several hard chargers to win his first NASCAR Xfinity Series career race by 0.116 seconds over Justin Allgaier.

Five drivers make up 2020 Xfinity Sunoco Rookie of the Year class

This season five drivers are vying for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors – Harrison Burton, Riley Herbst, Jesse Little, Joe Graf Jr., and Kody Vanderwal.

Each week the highest finishing rookie of the race will be awarded with Sunoco Rookie of the Race Award and the rookie who finishes the season highest in the driver championship points will win the Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors.

Harrison Burton (No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota) from Huntersville, N.C. will work with crew chief Ben Beshore this season. The 19-year old has nine previous Xfinity starts in his career but will be making his series track debut this weekend at Daytona. Among his nine previous Xfinity starts, his best finish was fourth at Iowa in 2019. Burton is the son of former NASCAR Cup Series driver and current NBC Sports TV analyst Jeff Burton.

Riley Herbst (No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota) from Las Vegas, Nev. will work with crew chief Dave Rogers this season. The 20-year old has made 10 Xfinity Series starts, all for Joe Gibbs Racing, including the July Daytona race last season where he started 11th and finished 18th.

Jesse Little (No. 4 JD Motorsports Chevrolet) from Sherrills Ford, N.C. will work with crew chief Bryan Berry this season. Little will be making his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut this weekend at Daytona International Speedway. Little is the son of former NASCAR Cup Series driver Chad Little.

Joe Graf Jr. (No. 08 SS Green Light Racing Chevrolet) from Mahwah, New Jersey will work with crew chief Patrick Donahue this season. Graf made three starts last year for Richard Childress Racing in the Xfinity Series, including a start at Daytona – where he started sixth and finished 23rd. This season he will compete fulltime with SS Green Light Racing.

Kody Vanderwal (No. 52 Means Motorsports Chevrolet) from LaSalle, Colorado is not entered this weekend at Daytona International Speedway but is expected to compete for rookie of the year this season. J.J. Yeley is driving the Means Motorsports No. 52 this weekend at Daytona. Vanderwal has cut his teeth competing in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Series driving for Levin Racing.

Garage Talk: Lots of new faces in new places

The NASCAR Xfinity Series offseason saw some shuffling of the drivers and teams, below is a quick update on who is where:

Ross Chastain has been tapped to run fulltime with Kaulig Racing and their No. 10 team with crew chief Bruce Schlicker. Chastain won the July race at Daytona last year, giving Kaulig Racing their first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory. Now the Florida native and famous watermelon farmer is looking to bring the organization its first series title. Chastain has made 11 series starts at Daytona, posting one win, six top 10s and an average finish of 12.4.

Myatt Snider makes his Richard Childress Racing debut as a part-time driver of the No. 21 Chevrolet this season. Snider will share time behind the wheel with Anthony Alfredo as newly named crew chief Andy Street will try and guide them to an owner’s championship for RCR. Snider is slated to drive five of the first seven races on the schedule, as well as the fall race at Martinsville and the season-ending race at Phoenix. This will be Snider’s Xfinity Series track debut this weekend at Daytona.

Joe Graf Jr. joins SS Green Light Racing at run for championship this season in the No. 08 Chevrolet. Graf has three Xfinity career starts under his belt, all for Richard Childress Racing last season. He participated in the July Daytona race in 2019; he started sixth but finished 23rd after being caught in an incident.

Jeb Burton will be in the JR Motorsport’s No. 8 Chevrolet this season on a part-time basis with crew chief Taylor Moyer; including this weekend at Daytona. The Virginia native and son to former Daytona 500 champion Ward Burton, ran seven Xfinity races last season with JRM posting a career-bests in starting position (fourth at Texas) and finishing position (fourth at Indianapolis). Has made two series starts at Daytona posting one top five.

Grizzled Vets: Drivers to watch in 2020

As always, the drivers we recognize, know and love are returning for another shot at a NASCAR Xfinity Series title this season – the veterans.

The JR Motorsports contingent of Justin Allgaier, Michael Annett and Noah Gragson return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series this season looking to bring JRM its fourth Xfinity driver championship and third consecutive season-opening victory. A win this weekend would be JR Motorsport’s seventh overall win at Daytona International Speedway (2019-1, 2018-1, 2017-2, 2016-1 and 2014 sweep). Annett won last season’s opener by a scant 0.116 second over his teammate Justin Allgaier in second.

Team Penske’s Austin Cindric returns to challenge for a 2020 title after his breakout season in 2019 where he posted his first career wins (Watkins Glen and Mid-Ohio), made the Playoffs and finished the year a career-best sixth in points. He’s made four starts at Daytona in the Xfinity Series posting two top fives – including a fifth-place finish in this event last season. Team Penske has four owner championships in the Xfinity Series, but Cindric is looking to bring them their first driver title this season.

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Brandon Jones returns to the No. 19 Toyota Supra with crew chief Jeff Meendering atop the pit box in 2020. Jones will have two rookie teammates this season in Harrison Burton and Riley Herbst. Both will lean on Jones this season, especially after his breakout season in 2019 where he produced his first Xfinity career victory (Kansas) and finished a career-best third in this race at Daytona last season.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe returns for the 2020 season looking to build on his successful first season with the team. Briscoe finished 2019 as the Sunoco Rookie of the Year with a career-best fifth in the Xfinity Playoffs, and he got his second career Xfinity win (Iowa). Looking to this weekend he has made just two starts at Daytona, both last season for SHR, posting a finish of 12th in this event. SHR won its first Xfinity Series owner championship last season with Cole Custer and this season looks to capitalize on a driver championship with Briscoe.

Kaulig Racing’s Justin Haley returns to the No. 11 Chevrolet team led by crew chief Alex Yontz for the 2020 season. Haley is looking to build on his rookie season last year that saw four top fives, 20 top 10s and a Playoff berth. This year, Haley will have a new fulltime teammate in Ross Chastain. Haley has just three series starts at Daytona posting a best finish of runner-up in the July race last season. Haley also won the rain-shortened NASCAR Cup Series July Daytona race last season for Spire Motorsports.

Xfinity party part-timers at Daytona

For some drivers, this weekend is the beginning of a 33-race championship, but for others it’s just about the checkered flag, the win and the celebration in Victory Lane. Which makes it no surprise several part-time Xfinity Series drivers are taking aim at Daytona this weekend.

One such driver specifically tapped to drive this weekend to challenge for the win is veteran AJ Allmendinger. The California wheelman will be jumping into the Kaulig Racing No. 16 Chevrolet this weekend with crew chief Lennie Chandler calling the shots from the pit box. Allmendinger was dominate in his lone Xfinity Series Daytona start last season leading 33 laps and crossing the start-finish line in the top five but was subsequently disqualified and dropped to 38th after failing post-race inspection. In total last season Allmendinger made five starts with Kaulig Racing, posting one win (Charlotte ROVAL), two top fives and a pole.

2018 Gander Trucks champ Brett Moffitt will help the newly formed Our Motorsports make their NASCAR Xfinity Series debut this weekend at Daytona International Speedway. Moffitt will pilot the No. 02 Chevrolet. Moffitt has only made three Xfinity Series starts in his career with a best finish of ninth at his home track Iowa Speedway. This will be Moffitt’s series track debut this weekend.

Hattori Racing Enterprises made their NASCAR Xfinity Series debut last season with driver Austin Hill and this weekend return to the series for a shot at Daytona. Hattori Racing Enterprises primarily races in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and the organization won the Gander Trucks season-opener last year. Hill made his Xfinity Series debut last season with owner Carl Long at Indianapolis – he started 17th and finished ninth.

Parade Laps: Insights to the drivers in the media breakouts this week

To kick off the 2020 season at Daytona International Speedway four NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers – JR Motorsports driver and defending winner of this race Michael Annett, Stewart-Haas Racing driver and 2019 Xfinity Sunoco Rookie of the Year Chase Briscoe, Kaulig Racing’s Justin Haley and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Brandon Jones – will participate in the Xfinity media breakout sessions on Friday, February 14 at 3:30-3:45 p.m. ET at the Media Center Press Conference Room.

Michael Annett (No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro)

Birthdate: June 23, 1986

Driver’s Age: 33

Hometown: Des Moines, Iowa

Hobbies: Cycling, working out, boating

Team: JR Motorsports

Crew Chief: Travis Mack

Xfinity Career Highlights:

Won first career NASCAR Xfinity Series race in the 2019 season-opener at Daytona International Speedway, qualifying him for the Playoffs; ultimately finished the season ninth in points.
In 2017, he made the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs and finished the season ninth in the championship standings.
In 2012, finished a career-best fifth in the series championship driver standings.
Daytona International Speedway Performance:

Has made 16 series starts at Daytona posting one win (2019), two top fives and three top 10s.
Average start, 13.9 and his average finish, 20.7.

Chase Briscoe (No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang)

Birthdate: December 15, 1994

Driver’s Age: 25

Hometown: Mitchell, Indiana

Hobbies: Spending time with family, online racing, watching sports

Team: Stewart-Haas Racing

Crew Chief: Richard Boswell II

Xfinity Career Highlights:

In 2019 — his first fulltime Xfinity Series season – Briscoe made a huge statement in the series with one win, 13 top fives, 26 top 10s and two poles. He also made it into the Playoffs and competed for a spot in the Championship 4 before being eliminated in the Round of 8.
In 2018, he ran 17 races for Roush Fenway Racing and Stewart-Haas Racing with Fred Biagi and won the inaugural race at the Charlotte Road Course.
Made NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in 2018 at Atlanta.
Daytona International Speedway Performance:

Has made two series starts at Daytona posting a best finish of 12th in this race last season.
Average start, 10.0 and average finish, 23.5.

Justin Halley (No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet Camaro)

Birthdate: April 28, 1999

Driver’s Age:

Hometown: Winamac, Ind.

Hobbies: Muscle car restoration, surfing, fishing and hunting, triathlons, mountain biking

Team: Kaulig Racing

Crew Chief: Alex Yontz

Xfinity Career Highlights:

In 2019, he posted four top fives and 20 top 10s and made the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs in his rookie year but was eliminated in the first round; finished the season 12th.
He secured his career-best finish in the Xfinity Series of second in July at Daytona.
Made NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Iowa Speedway in 2018.
Daytona International Speedway Performance:

Has made three series starts at Daytona, posting one top five.
His average start, 17.0 and his average finish is 12.3.

Brandon Jones (No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Supra)

Birthdate: February 18, 1997

Driver’s Age: 22

Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia

Hobbies: Woodworking, antique car restoration, metal fabrication, farming

Team: Joe Gibbs Racing

Crew Chief: Jeff Meendering

Xfinity Career Highlights:

In 2019, Jones earned his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series victory at Kansas Speedway. He qualified for the Playoffs for the third time and finished 10th in the final standings.
In 2018, he tallied a career-best finish of second at Talladega and reached the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs for the second time, finishing a career-best ninth in the standings.
In 2017, he captured his first career NASCAR Xfinity Series pole (Daytona-1).
In 2016, he made the inaugural NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs in his rookie season; ultimately finishing a then career-best 10th in the standings.
Daytona International Speedway Performance:

Has made eight series starts at Daytona, posting one top five, three top 10s and a pole (2017).
His average start, 12.2 and his average finish is 17.4.

NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series

New year, new name

The start of the 2020 series is also bringing an adjustment to the look of the trucks.

In 2019, NASCAR and Camping World announced an expansion to their partnership providing naming rights to the rebranded NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series.

In 2020, that name is going to change, again… but just a little. It will now be referred to as the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.

With the logo change also comes a new sponsor for the pole award. Cometic Gasket is now the official sponsor of the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series pole award.

Daytona’s NextEra Energy 250 will be the start of the Cometic Gasket Pole Award for the Gander Trucks Series.

Tilton Engineering and Xceldyne Valve Train Component also joined the series as contingency sponsors this season.

Daytona kicks off highly anticipated Gander Trucks field
The offseason brought a lot of changes to the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series. Although there will be a lot of familiar faces on the Gander Trucks lineup, there will also be a lot of new fulltime faces. Familiar faces will stick with familiar teams, while others have jumped to different ones to start off 2020. There will also be quite a few names that moved to another series making starts in the series.

The following drivers are 2020 rookie-of-the-year candidates:

No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota – Raphael Lessard
No. 21 GMS Racing Chevrolet – Zane Smith
No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota – Christian Eckes
No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet – Ty Majeski
No. 15 DGR-Crosley Ford – Tanner Gray

With a handful of new full-time faces in the Truck Series, take a look at some of the names that might make the biggest impact on the 2020 season.

Zane Smith made 10 Xfinity Series starts in the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. He accumulated two top fives and seven top 10s. With only one Gander Trucks start under his belt at Gateway, Smith will be tackling his rookie season with Kevin Manion leading the way as crew chief. In the ARCA Menards Series, Smith has driven for Venturini Motorsports and MDM Motorsports, finishing second in the championship with MDM in 2018. Smith is also a member of the 2020 NASCAR Next class and the Drivers Edge Development program.

Ty Majeski turned heads with his successful Late Model career and is taking over the No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet from Ross Chastain. Majeski has made one career start in the series and finished 11th at Phoenix. Majeski started his career on dirt karts in Wisconsin and later moved up to racing those Late Models on asphalt. After that, he went on to the touring series and was the ARCA Midwest Tour champion in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, while winning the Rookie-of-the-Year honors in 2014.

Raphael Lessard is only 18 years old and has made five starts for Kyle Busch Motorsports. He earned two top 10s and his experience in Late Models could certainly help him while competing for the rookie-of-the-year honors. Champion crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. will also take the lead for Lessard. Lessard became the second non-American to win the CARS Super Late Model series championship at age 15.

Tanner Gray made three starts in the Gander Trucks in 2019 and will now pilot the No. 15 DGR-Crosley Ford fulltime in 2020, while competing for Sunoco Rookie of the Year. The 2018 NHRA Pro Stock champion made his debut on the Martinsville short track just eight months after making his first stock car start in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series and New Smyrna Speedway. Gray became the youngest NHRA national event winner in April in 2017 and then he went on to with the championship in 2018, his second year in the division.

Christian Eckes was crowned the 2019 ARCA Menards Series champion and made eight starts for Kyle Busch Motorsports, where he also shined. He earned three pole awards, three top fives and four top 10s. Rudy Fugle, another champion crew chief, will be atop the pit box for Eckes and it’s expected that they’ll be contending for a lot of wins.

Todd Gilliland notched his first career win in 2019 for Kyle Busch Motorsports but will be transitioning to Front Row Motorsports for 2020. Front Row Motorsports partnered with DGR-Crosley to field in an entry for Gilliland.

The veteran scoop

Johnny Sauter is no stranger to success at Daytona International Speedway. Sauter will be making his 12th start at the superspeedway, looking to clinch his fourth win at the historic track. The driver of the No. 13 ThorSport Racing Ford has three wins (2013, 2016, 2018) with four top fives and five top 10s. Four of Sauter’s finishes outside of the top 10 were a product of being involved in a crash (2009, 2010, 2012, 2019). In 2019, Sauter finished 23rd after starting 17th. But, with the experience he has, he’ll be looking for redemption on Friday night.

On the other side of things, veteran and reigning champion Matt Crafton, hasn’t had the best of luck at Daytona International Speedway. He will be making his 20th start at the track on Friday, the most of any active driver but has yet to take home the trophy. Crafton’s best finish at the track is fifth (twice; 2010 and 2019). He only has those two top-five finishes and eight top 10s. He’s only led eight laps at Daytona in his career and has four DNF’s. But, since 2019 was one of his two fifth-place finishes and he’s coming off another championship season, maybe 2020 will be the year he checks a Daytona win off his list.

Silver anniversary for ThorSport Racing

ThorSport Racing is celebrating its 25th anniversary in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series at the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway on Friday, February 14 (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Their current drivers will sport special silver paint schemes on their Ford F-150s at the track this weekend to kick off the season.

Since its launch, ThorSport has accumulated 12 consecutive seasons with at least one win in the Gander Trucks series. They have made it to Victory Lane a total of 30 times with drivers Terry Cook, Matt Crafton, Johnny Sauter, Ben Rhodes, Grant Enfinger and Chase Briscoe. The team has 253 top fives, 533 top 10s and 33 pole awards to their name. ThorSport has finished in the top 10 in points 27 times with reigning champion Matt Crafton doing it 13 consecutive seasons (2007-2019).

ThorSport Racing has four drivers’ championships total including one in the ARCA Menards Series with Frank Kimmel and three in the Gander Trucks series all with Crafton. The team also owns three Rookie of the Year titles (2007, 2009 and 2018).

Additinally, the top two drivers with the most consecutive starts in series history have done so behind the wheel of a ThorSport truck, including Crafton with 453 starts.

Can Hill do it again?

Austin Hill had a career-best season in 2019 and it all started off at Daytona International Speedway.

Hill secured his first career win in his first season with Hattori Racing Enterprises. The win was only the start, though, as he went on to win three more times, including the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Hill may not have hoisted the championship trophy at the end of the season, but he did have seven top-five finishes and 13 top-10 finishes with three pole awards.

Todd Bodine is the only driver in series history to have won back-to-back at Daytona (2008-2009).

Toyota dominated with eight consecutive wins at Daytona from 2007 to 2014, but Hill was the first Toyota driver to have won for the manufacturer at the track since 2014.

Coming off a career-best season with four wins and clinching the first races of the season as well as the last, Hill has to have some motivation heading into Friday night’s race.

To the pole
Only four drivers in NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series history have won the pole award as well as the race at Daytona International Speedway.

2001 – Joe Ruttman

2006 – Mark Martin

2007 – Jack Sprague

2017 – Kaz Grala

In total, seven races of the 20 races run have been won from the front row. Last season, Austin Hill started in the 10th position and went on to win the season-opener but before that, it was three years of winners from the front row.

NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Etc.

Hey, I know you: Some big names from Gander Trucks history will be back behind the wheel of a truck this weekend. John Hunter Nemechek, who now competes fulltime in the Cup Series for Front Row Motorsports, will pilot the No. 8 NEMCO Motorsports Ford. Ross Chastain will be back with Niece Motorsports for the weekend behind the wheel of the No. 40 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet, but is competing fulltime in the Xfinity Series with Kaulig Racing. Riley Herbst will be competing for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the No. 51 Toyota.

Back, back again: Niece Motorsports enters the 2020 season with a hefty lineup of drivers for their three trucks. Ty Majeski is the only fulltime driver for the team in the No. 45 Chevrolet. Other drivers will be behind the wheel of the Nos. 40 and 44 throughout the season including Natalie Decker, Ross Chastain, Ryan Truex, Jett Noland and Carson Hocevar. Chastain ran fulltime for Niece Motorsports last year, earning the team their first career wins as well as a run for the title. They came up short, though, as Chastain finished second in the points behind Crafton.

ARCA takeover: The NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series will have a lot of champions hit the track on Friday night – ARCA Menards Series champions. Among those are Sheldon Creed (2018 champion), Christian Eckes (2019) and Grant Enfinger (2015). Additionally, Derek Kraus won the ARCA West championship last year. Creed was fulltime with GMS Racing last season, where he got four top fives and 11 tops 10s. Kraus ran select races in the Gander Trucks series for Bill McAnally Racing and Eckes ran on a part-time basis for Kyle Busch Motorsports. Enfinger is the veteran Gander Trucks competitor among the group, entering his fourth fulltime season with ThorSport Motorsports. Zane Smith finished second in the 2019 ARCA championship and will also run a truck fulltime this season. All of the ARCA champs will be completing fulltime this season for another crown – just in a different series this time.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
BLUEGREEN VACATIONS DUEL 2 AT DAYTONA
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES & QUOTES
FEBRUARY 13, 2020

WILLIAM BYRON POWERS CAMARO ZL1 1LE TO VICTORY LANE

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA COLOR OF THE YEAR CAMARO ZL1 1L
2nd JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
3rd KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 1LE
8th KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
9th ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 77 ADVENTHEALTH CAMARO ZL1 1LE

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st William Byron (Chevrolet
2nd Jimmie Johnson (Chevrolet)
3rd Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)
4th Kevin Harvick (Ford)
5th Cole Custer (Ford)

The NASCAR Cup Series season officially kicks off next weekend at Daytona International Speedway with the Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 16 at 2:30 P.M. ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA ‘COLOR OF THE YEAR’ CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race Winner:
WITH THREE LAPS TO GO, WAS THAT THE DESIGNATED ‘GO LAP’ TO MAKE THE MOVE, OR DID YOU JUST FEEL IT?
“We didn’t really have Chevy orders or anything like that. We just did a good job of working together. Kurt (Busch) was a great pusher and a great helper and I really had a lot of trust in him. I was really trying to go with one to go, but I had enough momentum out of the tri-oval just watching old races; that’s just kind of where the momentum kind of lines up. So, I didn’t know if I’d get that same momentum, once everybody started pushing with one to go. So, just made it there. Got to second, I guess. And then, Kevin (Harvick) played really nice and didn’t pull a big block. Thanks to Axalta. This car looks really good. It sure is beautiful under the lights. I’m excited for the 500.”

FIRST CAR ON TOHE RESTART WITH FOUR FRESH TIRES, THREE TO GO. WAS THAT THE DESIGNATED ‘GO’ LAP OR DID YOU JUST FEEL IT?
“No, there wasn’t any Chevy orders or anything like that. We just did a good job of working together. Kurt (Busch) was a great pusher and great helper. I really had a lot of trust in him. I was really trying to go with one to go, but I had enough momentum out of the tri‑oval. Watching the old races, that’s where the momentum kind of lines up. I didn’t know if I would get that kind of same momentum once everybody started pushing with one to go. Made it there, got to second. I guess Kevin played really nice and didn’t pull a big block. Thanks to Axalta. This car looks really good. I’m sure it was beautiful under the lights. Excited for the 500.”

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 2nd
“Something happened there, but I was sideways and couldn’t really pick up the momentum. William (Byron) did an awesome job of seeing it and got in front of me. I’m so stocked for William, but I wanted to win (laughs). We have a really good car, better than the Clash. I’m so proud of this Ally team. It was a nice 1-2 finish there for Hendrick Motorsports.”

KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 3rd
“It was good to finish third there. I never had any contact with anybody bump drafting or anything like that, so our car is clean. The guys don’t have to work really at all cosmetically. So, that’s good. Now, we’ll go do some more practice runs and try to make our Camaro a little faster.”

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 8th
“I was going for it. My team put me on offense with four fresh tires. I had a run with the 13 car (Ty Dillon). I knew that Jimmie Johnson was going to do all he could to go with the 24 (William Byron) to win. I needed to close the door on Kevin Harvick. Everyone started to close up and I just needed to be more aggressive to close the door on the bottom and have a run on the bottom lane. I went for it with the Monster Energy Chevy. There’s just a few scratches on it, but we’ll buff them out.”

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 77 ADVENTHEALTH CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 9th
“For the first time driving a Chip Ganassi Racing car, it was definitely a dream. I got to pit with all the Chevy’s there and learn what I could probably do better on that first green flag stop of the year to get the rust knocked off. There’s a lot left to be desired for me. We just need a little more grip in the car, more overall grip for longer into the tire runs.

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CATERPILLAR CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 10th
“We were in a really good position to start the race off with our Caterpillar Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. I was being a little cautious at first with how aggressively I was going to block for position in the outer lane. On Lap 4 or 5, I had a good run on the 1 and was running in the top five. I kind of wanted to move our Chevrolet further up still and made a move to the outside but got put three-wide and shuffled back. That affected our race a little bit, especially when it started to single out. I started to panic a little bit then, but my crew chief, Randall Burnett, and spotter, Derek Kneeland, did a great job of reminding me there was still a lot of race left to run. The caution towards the end of the race helped stack everyone back up again, which was great since I was able to push the issue on the aggression side a little bit more. It’s hard when a bunch of Fords are lined up on the outside to get one of them to jump out and go with you, but I had some good cars to push me from behind which helped us climb back up through the field. There were a couple moves I could have tried to get a few more spots, but that would have been too risky for our starting spot in the DAYTONA 500. We kept our No. 8 Caterpillar Chevrolet clean tonight, and that’s what mattered most.”

TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 11th
“Our GEICO Camaro ZL1 1LE handled so well in the draft. It’s probably the best car I’ve ever driven here. We had a shot at it at the end, but I didn’t have the help I needed to make a move. We ended up getting shuffled back a little farther, but man, I’m excited for Sunday. Matt and I will debrief and make the car even better with a few small tweaks during our final two practice sessions. Our Germain Racing team will be ready to go for the 500.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 15th
“We really just wanted to keep the car clean there at the end. We had a really good car throughout the Duel and were really getting an idea of where we need to be on Sunday. This Valvoline team has put in some hard work this week and it’s definitely showing.”

BRENDAN GAUGHAN, NO. 62 BEARD MOTORSPORTS/SOUTH POINT CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 17th
“Our Chevrolet made it in on qualifying, so ECR did their job with a strong motor. ECR, the Beard Motorsports guys and all the help that RCR gave got our Chevy into the show on qualifying day. So, for me, the Duels were very boring and that is exactly what I was hoping for. Our race car is in great shape. We’re going to do a little bit of practice; there are a couple of things I don’t like. We’ll do a little fine-tuning, but our Camaro is bad to the bone for the race. We are going to be something to reckon with in the 500.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA ‘COLOR OF THE YEAR’ CAMARO ZL1 1LE, AND CHAD KNAUS (CREW CHIEF) POST-RACE PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:
THE MODERATOR: We are joined by the crew chief of the race‑winning car, which was the No. 24 Axalta Color of the Year Chevrolet. We have Chad Knaus here.
We’ll open it up to questions.

Q. How does it feel to be in here with a victory with somebody other than Jimmie for the first time?
CHAD KNAUS: Man, it just feels good to be in here again, how about that? That’s a unique situation. He did it last year, right, Jimmie without me.
It’s good to be here. Obviously very, very proud of everybody at Hendrick Motorsports. For me emotionally, it’s pretty cool for sure.

Q. What has it been like for you working with William and developing him compared to where you and Jimmie started your relationship?
CHAD KNAUS: Oh, gosh. That’s a completely different ‑‑ we couldn’t be much different, right, obviously. Jimmie and I were coming up trying to prove ourselves at the same time. We both knew that was our opportunity. If we blew it, we probably weren’t going to be in racing too much longer, at least doing those respective roles.
To be working here with William, watching him mature, watching him just get the experience and everything that he’s got going on, the confidence to go out there and race with those guys, it’s been a pleasure, to be honest with you.
With Jimmie, we were just digging and clawing and scratching for everything we could. This has been a lot of fun. It’s been a very calculated path. Hopefully we can continue to go down this road.
THE MODERATOR: We’re also joined by the race‑winning driver, William Byron.
We’ll continue with questions.
CHAD KNAUS: Good job, William (laughter). You don’t clap in the media center (smiling)? Guys, you guys need to lighten up.

Q. Chad, as he pulled out with two laps to go, were you nervous? Did you make that call? What was the strategy?
CHAD KNAUS: No, oddly enough William and I had a discussion prerace. He basically told me where he wanted to be at the end of the race. He kind of ended up right about there.
He knew what he felt like he needed to do. That was all on him. He doesn’t need me in his ear to teach him how to do that stuff. He knows what he’s got going on.

Q. William, you get points for this race, but not technically an official win. Still feel good to be in Victory Lane?
WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, we’re going to use this momentum as it should be. I feel like we didn’t luck into this. We’ve built something over the last year working with Chad. He’s allowed me to grow up a lot. I think he’s held me accountable for a lot of things that are really good.
I just feel comfortable walking into the shop. I think that took me really till this year, this off‑season, to walk in and just feel like a racecar driver and comfortable. That’s a lot of credit to him and Tyler, Brandon, all the guys on the team.
Yeah, we just went out there and raced. That’s what he told me to do before the race. He said, Race it, so…

Q. Chad, when he won, came across the line, you weren’t exuberant. Was that more like a validation of what you’ve been waiting to see him do?
CHAD KNAUS: Well, no, man. Whenever you win, you’re excited, right? I don’t know if it’s validation. I think validation will be when we go out there and we’re battling consistently for wins and top fives. That’s what we’re after, right?
It’s real easy to make the checkered flag the goal in this sport. That’s just a part of the journey, right? The goal is to really get the team working correctly, give William the confidence level, performing where he needs to.
That there, that was a little bit of happiness we got a flag.

Q. William, in 1993, just as you did tonight by getting your first win in the Daytona qualifying race, Jeff Gordon’s first win came in one of the qualifying races.
WILLIAM BYRON: I guess I just need to win 93 more races probably (smiling).
CHAD KNAUS: Time is on your side, for sure. Mine, not so much.
WILLIAM BYRON: You have to stick around (laughter).

Q. William, you’re big in the iRacing community. With all the changes in NASCAR, we’re seeing a lot of iRacing coming up. Does this add any more pressure on you to get a win for the community to show young drivers it’s definitely possible?
WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, I mean, my idea with iRacing, I love having something to do during the week that involves what I try to work on. It’s just fun. It’s fun to get on there with your buddies and race.
Ironically, I was telling Chad I crashed out of every Daytona race this week. Law of averages kind of worked out tonight.
It’s fun to race on there. I meet a lot of good racecar drivers. There’s definitely a difference in racing a real car. There’s a lot of adrenaline that goes into it. I think that Chad has helped me with that, kind of channeling that throughout a race.

Q. Chad, since you’ve been around with Hendrick for a long time, how does it feel to be a part of the winning 24 team?
CHAD KNAUS: I’ve spoken about that a lot. The 24 is something, when they started the 24 team in Atlanta in ’92, I was there for that first race with Jeff. I wasn’t part of the team. I was there. I was like, Man, I’d really like to be a part of that team.
As a 20‑year‑old young man seeing that team grow, wanting to be crew chief of that car back then, to finally get the opportunity to work with William, all of our partners, be a part of the 24 car, it’s really a dream come true.
It’s a lot of fun. I carry the 24 like a badge of honor, I really do. I think to be a part of this 24 team, the heritage it’s had through the years with Ray Evernham, Brian Whitesell, Robbie Loomis, you talk to the people on the team, the sponsors we’ve had, obviously what Jeff was able to do with it, there’s a lot of pride with that 2‑4.

Q. William, although you personally have crashed out on iRacing this week, your team has been doing well. You’re here in Victory Lane. Can you carry that momentum into Sunday?
WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, I was pissed that my team finished second. That was a bummer.
No, it’s great momentum for us with this win tonight. I feel like honestly it just gives confidence to me to make those bold moves late in the race. I feel like you have to put yourself in those positions to really know what it’s going to feel like.
Chad and I talked a lot about that going down here for this week, just racing every lap of the week. We almost raced all the laps last weekend. This was a really critical race for me to learn and kind of perfect it a little bit.
Still a long way to go. When you look at guys like Denny or Joey out there, I think they’re very aggressive at these races. That’s who you’re going to have to beat.

Q. What did you feel behind the wheel with the 550 tapered spacer than how it felt last year? How do you feel you compare now power‑wise to the Fords?
WILLIAM BYRON: Two really good questions.
I think first with the different package, we’ve had this one since Talladega last April. I feel like there are definitely a lot bigger runs. The cars are more fun to drive. You’re not so worried about losing it on entry, kind of feeling lazy, washing around. They’re kind of more in the track when you’re making a move. I think that’s fun as a driver.
As far as our car goes, I think we learned a lot tonight about the speed of it. The conditions were really favorable. But what I also noticed being in the second Duel, there was a lot of rubber on the racetrack. I think that will be similar to the 500.
Just felt really good about the car, especially the run we were able to generate to be able to get to I guess Kevin on the inside. That was pretty impressive.
We’ll see what happens.

Q. William, you talked about finally feeling comfortable in the shop, working with the team. Now you have a trophy in your pocket. Do you feel like you’re here in your third year at the Cup level, like you found a place? Is there still work to do?
WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, I mean, I think it’s all about working with Chad and feeling like I can go to him with any question I have and give him an honest answer on any answer that he needs. That’s a big step, is the relationship here.
There’s really no other relationship out there besides you and your guys and your crew chief. I think that’s where the confidence for me comes from. What he said about it being a journey, we just don’t stop here. This is kind of a result that we can put up on the board now in the shop and say, Okay, now we actually have something to show for what we think we’ve been able to do lately.

Q. William, we saw Fords work together really well in the first race. Chevys worked well together in this race. Do you feel there’s more pressure than ever heading into the 500 for manufacturers to stick together?
WILLIAM BYRON: No. I mean, what you see is not forced. I think there were times last year when we were kind of figuring it out. We might have been a little bit too inline, too conservative with it.
What you saw tonight was a matter of happening to work with guys that are your friends and guys that are of the same manufacturer towards the same goal.
It’s kind of like that little bit of confidence you have to not always look over your shoulder, think that guy is going to hang you out to dry. It’s not forced, but it’s going to happen because those guys are your teammates.

Q. William, how does one know when to make their move late in the race? You had the line of Chevys behind you. Was it a case that you’re instigating to pull out or you’re waiting for the push, jumping in front of them? How do you manage that? Was that at the time you were thinking with three laps to go?
WILLIAM BYRON: It’s just based on when that run comes. In an ideal world, everyone would wait till one to go and fan out just because where we were was a good points position to finish the stage or the race. It would have been good to have six points or whatever it was.
I had kind of not been paying attention, not been pushing as aggressively. Once the 18 got off the top lane and it was single file, I wasn’t pushing the guy in front of me as hard to make that line go. A run just kind of luckily formed right there. I figured if I didn’t take it, Kurt was going to.

FastScripts by ASAP Sports

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Erik Jones Leads Toyota in Duel 2
Jones strong throughout the 60-lap event

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 13, 2020) – Erik Jones (sixth) was the highest-finishing Toyota driver in Thursday’s second qualifying Duel at Daytona International Speedway.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Duel 2 – Daytona International Speedway
150 miles, 60 laps
Thursday, February 13, 2020

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, William Bryon*
2nd, Jimmie Johnson*
3rd, Kyle Larson *
4th, Kevin Harvick*
5th, Cole Custer*
6th, ERIK JONES
13th, KYLE BUSCH
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

ERIK JONES, No. 20 DEWALT Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 6th

Solid run, got shuffled back and came back up to sixth.

“It was clean; it was good. Nothing big happened, which is always good for this race. It was tough. Kyle (Busch) was the really the only one that we had on our side. Not a lot we could do there. We got shuffled back, and came back to a decent finish. The DEWALT Camry drove okay. We learned some good stuff, and made some good changes. I think we will be okay on Sunday to go after it.”

# # #

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 38 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 2.8 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2018.

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 ToyotaNewsroom.com

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Thursday, February 13, 2020
DAYTONA 500 DUEL #2

FORD FINISHING RESULTS
4th – Kevin Harvick
5th – Cole Custer
7th – Matt DiBenedetto
12th – Michael McDowell
14th – David Ragan
19th – Corey LaJoie

KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 Busch Light #PIT4BUSCH Ford Mustang — Finished 4th

“When they are coming that fast it is putting a lot of risk out there to block. We have seen how that works out. I gotta thank Busch LIght and our #PIT4BUSCH Ford Mustang. We had a great car tonight. The guys did a great job. We were able to get onto pit road and had a great pit stop and put ourselves in position to have a chance there. Matt D was a heck of a pusher. It was kind of two against the rest of those Chevrolets and we held our own tonight. We have some fast Ford Mustangs. I gotta thank Mobil 1, Hunt Brothers Pizza, Jimmy Johns, Ford, Outback and everyone that helps us on this car for making it so fast. There was just a herd of Chevy’s we had to race against in that race and two on seven and we almost beat them with only two cars.”

HOW MANY DO YOU NEED ON SUNDAY IN THE FINAL 10 LAPS? “That was just a weird scenario with the 24 in the middle of our six cars that we had on the bottom. He was able to pull out of line and then it kind of slowed our line down enough to where they were able to carry that momentum from the outside line. Those guys did everything they needed to do right there. I probably could have been a little more aggressive on the block but we have seen what that results in.”

COLE CUSTER, No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Mustang — Finished 5th

“We are still just getting used to everything. We had a solid night and a good finish there at the end. We definitely have some things to look at on the car. We got pretty tight there and maybe I am doing something wrong. We have a lot of good stuff to build on. We had good pit stops and everything was solid. I can’t thank the team enough for all the preparation we had coming here and all the Ford simulator time we had and I am really stoked that we were able to get some stage points out of it and can’t wait to get out there on Sunday.”

MATT DIBENEDETTO, No. 21 Motorcraft Ford Mustang — Finished 7th

WAS IT JUST A NUMBERS GAME AT THE END? “Yeah, we were just a little bit of a sitting duck there. I slept a little on a block. I felt like I could have got up there. They were gonna go where we weren’t regardless, but I could have tried to stall them out a little bit. I was pushing Kevin and at least our Fords together were doing pretty good. It was all right. We learned some good stuff and kept the car in one piece when everyone got real squirrely on the backstretch. Kevin got off the track. I let him back in and just made sure we didn’t tear up cars because we still have a good car that we want to keep for Sunday.”

GOOD TO KNOCK OFF THE RUST WITH EVERYTHING? “Yeah, it was good to get all that stuff out of the way like getting on pit road and making sure the brakes are good in a race situation. It’s different when you all pit in a pack versus practice, so there were little spots where I was conservative and like, ‘OK, on Sunday I know I can get a little bit more here. I can get in the pit stall and get a little bit more here,’ and then peeling out, our car sucks up, what kind of blocks you can make, just kind of getting back in the rhythm of all the things. It was a good test. I’m a little bummed that I didn’t stall out that top lane. I was a little too late to it and didn’t want to cause a crash, so just trying to be a little bit smart, but I’m still a little mad at myself over that.”

WERE YOU SURPRISED THE CHEVYS WERE ABLE TO COME UP AND MAKE THAT MOVE? “No, I called it. I said it on the radio with about five to go. I said, ‘Watch for when they pull out of line. They’re gonna do it.’ A couple of Fords and there was a line of Chevys, it’s just how it works on the race track so I knew it was coming, and I was a little slow to the block. Regardless, they were gonna go where I didn’t, but I wanted to stall them out and I was a little bit too slow to getting there. I should have been a little bit quicker getting up there, so I guess just knocking a little bit of rust off and trying to not crash the primary car.”

Martin Truex Jr. Leads Toyota In Duel 1 at Daytona
Rookie Christopher Bell also scores top-10 finish

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 13, 2020) – Martin Truex Jr. (seventh) was the highest-finishing Toyota driver in Duel 1 at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Duel 1 – Daytona International Speedway
150 miles, 60 laps
Thursday, February 13, 2020

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Joey Logano*
2nd, Aric Almirola*
3rd, Ryan Newman*
4th, Brad Keselowki*
5th, Darrell Wallace Jr.*
7th, MARTIN TRUEX JR
9th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
11th, DENNY HAMLIN
20th, CHAD FINCHUM
22nd, DANIEL SUÁREZ
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

DANIEL SUÁREZ, No. 96 Toyota Certified Used Vehicles Toyota Camry, Gaunt Brothers Racing

Finishing Position: 22nd

What was the communication coming off of Turn 4 that led to the contact?

“There was not communication. The 2 (Brad Keselowski) car all of a sudden started to slow down and obviously it was either wreck him or go to the right and I thought the 12 (Ryan Blaney) was going to give me a little more room, but obviously he didn’t.

What happened out there?

“The 2 (Brad Keselowski) car, he started getting his hand out of the window super, super late and I didn’t see him. When I started going out, the 12 (Ryan Blaney) was there.”

# # #

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 38 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 2.8 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2018.

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 ToyotaNewsroom.com

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
BLUEGREEN VACATIONS DUEL 1 AT DAYTONA
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES & QUOTES
FEBRUARY 13, 2020

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
5th BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 UNITED STATES AIR FORCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
6th AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS / TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE
8th RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE
13th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
16th RYAN PREECE, NO. 37 COTTONELLE CAMARO ZL1 1LE

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Joey Logano (Ford)
2nd Aric Almirola (Ford)
3rd Ryan Newman (Ford)
4th Brad Keselowski (Ford)
5th Bubba Wallace (Chevrolet)

The NASCAR Cup Series season officially kicks off next weekend at Daytona International Speedway with the Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 16 at 2:30 P.M. ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES:

BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 UNITED STATES AIR FORCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 5th
“We’ve got a lot of work to do. Our Chevrolet was sideways. I thought our strategy was going to work out. Under green there, we had a really good pit stop and coming down pit road with no mistakes, that kind of prevailed for us a little bit. Man, we just could never get the balance. I was just hanging on for dear life. So, we made an adjustment there under the yellow. It was OK until about 10-laps to go and it was back to hanging on. It got hairy, but we’re trained to do those situations. I kind of closed my eyes there coming to the checkered, I didn’t know what was going to happen. It’s all good.”

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 8th
“Our Camaro ZL1 1LE was really fast. I thought we put ourselves in a great position for a win there and it was good to get myself into different positions. I felt like we pushed really well and I felt like I got pushed pretty solid. I thought we did everything we needed to do, it just looked like the 11 (Denny Hamlin) just couldn’t hang on right there at the end. He got me clear and I thought about moving up, but we worked so well together on the bottom that I tried to stick with it. But that obviously cost us a chance at the win. All-in-all, we learned a lot and I think we know exactly what we need to do going into Friday and Saturday’s practice to get ready for the 500. It was a good first day. I got a new spotter on the roof and we work really well together. There’s a lot of new pieces that I’m glad we were able to come out here and race hard. I feel really good going into Sunday.

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 13th
“It was kind of a power in numbers. I thought we had a decent thing working there at one point, but it just fell a part there at the end. But our car was plenty good enough to be good on Sunday. So, we’ll see.”

REED SORENSON, NO. 27 CAMARO ZL1 1LE – (Races his way into the Daytona 500) – Finished 18th
YOU RACED YOUR WAY IN, WHICH MIGHT BE ONE OF THE SMALLEST TEAMS YOU’VE BEEN A PART OF HERE AT THE DAYTONA 500. HOW BIG IS THIS FOR PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS? HOW EMOTIONAL IS THIS FOR YOU?
“Well, it is a big deal. The money that comes in from this race for a small team is a big deal to kind of get the ball rolling financially. Yeah, these guys worked really hard over the winter. This is probably the best motor I’ve had to try to race my way in. So, I was excited about that, that we were able to put the effort in to have an engine here. So, I’m just proud of everybody and I’m looking forward to Sunday. I think it will be fun.”

“It’s a huge deal. Just proud of all these guys at Premium Motorsports for putting this car together. They’ve been nervous for a couple weeks now. A lot of work gets put into these things. So proud of them that we made the race, and this kind of gets the ball rolling, like you said, for a small race team. So got a pretty blue car and maybe we can put some decals on it now with sponsors. Just really happy to be in the 500, and everything that happens from this point is icing on the cake, so we’re going to try to go have fun and drive hard on Sunday.”
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Thursday, February 13, 2020
DAYTONA 500 DUEL #1

FORD FINISHING RESULTS
1st – Joey Logano
2nd – Aric Almirola
3rd – Ryan Newman
4th – Brad Keselowski
10th – Chris Buescher
12th – John Hunter Nemechek
14th – Ryan Blaney
15th – Clint Bowyer

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford Mustang — Finished 1st

“This is awesome. What great teammwork by the Ford’s, especially Aric Almirola, my goodness. He was a great pusher at the right time and we were able to hold off the bottom when we needed and hold off the Chevy’s and showed the speed that the Ford’s have here. That is something I am proud to be a part of. I am proud to be driving that Blue Oval and these Roush Yates motors. We are ready to rock and roll. I can’t wait for the 500.”

YOU WERE ABOUT FOUR CAR LENGTHS OUT FRONT AND THEN STENHOUSE CAME AND GOT AHEAD OF YOU BUT COULDN’T QUITE SLIDE IN FRONT OF YOU. WHAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE THERE? “I think it was just the run I had from the 10 pushing me. We were going so much faster that there was really no opportunity for him to jump in front of us. He was trying to pull his Chevy into the lane and it was old school Chevy versus Ford and I am glad to say Ford won this one.”

ARIC ALMIROLA, No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang — Finished 2nd

“Our cars are so good. I’m so proud of Mike Bugarewicz and all the guys on our Smithfield team. It’s a great way to start Speedweeks for us. Mike has been telling me all winter long that this car is really, really good and he’s excited about it, and then we were the fastest qualifying Ford Mustang and so I knew he was right. We got a really, really good car and then tonight it drove so good. It would draft really well. I was able to be very aggressive and bump drafting and pushing and I just felt really good. I felt really comfortable, so I’m ready to go for Sunday.”

HOW MUCH IS THE NUMBER TWO GUY IN CONTROL? “You certainly are in control of the momentum and the runs that they get or don’t get, but you also have to be careful. You can make a mistake and hook the guy in front of you pretty easy, so you’ve got to be mindful of that and be smart.”

YOU DID THE TANDEM DRAFT A FEW TIMES AS WELL. IS IT WHAT YOU THOUGHT IT WOULD BE AND HOW DID THAT WORK? “I think so. I think you could stay tandem for a while. There’s a lot of factors that go into it. Your car doesn’t drive as good. You’re putting the guy in front of you in a little bit of a bad position pushing in the corners. That’s a little bit tricky. If he makes a move and gets offset on you too much, you could make a mistake or both of you could end up wrecked and then, oh by the way, you don’t get the air to the radiator when you’re tucked up behind, so you’ve got to be mindful of all of that, too.”

RYAN NEWMAN, No. 6 Koch Industries Ford Mustang — Finished 3rd

“Our Koch Industries Ford was good. I’m really proud of the guys. They brought a really good piece here and keeping it in one piece was one of the goals. Obviously, you want to win, but the big one is on Sunday. We had great execution by everybody at Ford to have a good, strong finish there. I think we had the top four cars and it’s something to look forward to for the 500.”

BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang — Finished 4th

“I thought we were really in a good spot until that crash with Blaney and Suarez. We were right there, for sure. That cycled us back a few spots and I could never get a clear lane to make anything happen, but it was still a decent result for sure for all the Fords.”

DO YOU FEEL GOOD ABOUT SUNDAY NOW? “Yeah, this car drives really good. It’s got good speed. Let’s go race.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Peak Ford Mustang — Finished 14th

YOU KEPT YOUR MUSTANG OFF THE WALL AFTER THE CONTACT, SO WAS THAT SOMETHING YOU FOCUSED ON AT THAT POINT? “I guess if you wound it, try not to kill it. We got lucky. We should have never been in that spot in the first place. It was just an error on my part and kind of a little lack of communication that didn’t end well.”

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
62ND DAYTONA 500
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
DAYTONA, FLORIDA
FEBRUARY 16, 2020

BOWTIE BULLETS:
CONSISTENTLY TAKING THE CHECKERED FLAG
Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 24 Daytona 500 victories — more than all non-GM brands combined. A Chevrolet has won four times in the past 10 years, tying for the most among manufacturers.

STARTING FROM THE POLE AGAIN
A Chevrolet has started the Daytona 500 from the pole for eight consecutive years, which is the longest streak of any manufacturer at Daytona International Speedway. A Chevrolet driver has sat on the pole 28 times, the most among all manufacturers. On Feb. 9, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., driving the No. 47 Kroger Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for JTG Daugherty Racing, vaulted to the top with a lap of 46.253 seconds at 194.582 mph for his first pole since 2017, third of his career and the team’s first since 2015.

FRONT-ROW KNOW-HOW
Alex Bowman, driving the No. 88 Valvoline Camaro ZL1 1LE for Hendrick Motorsports, qualified on the front row for the Daytona 500 for the third year in a row. He was also second in 2019. In 2018, his NASCAR Cup Series rookie season, Bowman won the pole at age 24.

SWEEPING UP
Chevrolet has swept the front row 18 times for the Daytona 500, including eight of the past 10 years. The first was in 1976 with Ramo Stott earning the pole and Terry Ryan starting second. In 2019, Chevrolet swept the top five spots in qualifying – the top four by Hendrick Motorsports and the fifth spot by Richard Childress Racing.

JOHNSON’S VICTORY CIRCLE
Chevrolet career driver and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson announced that 2020 would be his final full season of competition. A look at his Daytona 500 success: Johnson has two victories (2006, 2013) – both from the ninth starting position. He started from the pole in his 2002 rookie season and in ’08. Johnson is one of only two drivers to win the race and go on to claim the series championship more than once (2006, 2013). He is among five drivers to win both NASCAR Cup Series races at Daytona International Speedway in the same year (2013). Johnson needs one victory to tie Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip for fourth on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series list with 84.

“I want to win races and I want to be a championship threat,” he said after Daytona 500 qualifying. “So, I’ll try to figure that out as the year goes on. It’s been a heck of a run and I’m very excited to start my final full-time season. I’m very excited to have Ally on board and support from Chevrolet.”

INTRODUCING THE ZL1 1LE
The 2020 Camaro ZL1 1LE turned heads with the pole sweep Feb. 9. Chevrolet’s work developing the production car informed the aerodynamics of the new design for the racetrack. “We’re more educated, we’re better prepared,” said Chad Knaus, who enters his second season as crew chief on William Byron’s No. 24 car.

CHEVROLET DRIVERS MAKING THEIR DEBUT
Tyler Reddick, the 2019 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion in a Chevrolet, will make his NASCAR Cup Series debut in the No. 8 Caterpillar Camaro ZL1 1LE for Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. He amassed five poles, six wins, 24 top-five and 27 top-10 finishes last season.

Brennan Poole will drive the No. 15 SpartanGo Camaro ZL1 1LE for Premium Motorsports. In 83 NASCAR Xfinity Series starts from 2015-17, he recorded one pole, eight top-five and 36 top-10 finishes.

Quinn Huff, who competed in the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series spring race at Phoenix, will make his Daytona 500 debut in the No. 00 Jacob Construction Camaro ZL1 1LE for StarCom Racing.

TUNE IN
FOX will telecast the 267-lap race live at 2:30 p.m. EST Sunday, Feb. 16. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

BY THE NUMBERS:
* Victories by current Chevrolet drivers at Daytona International Speedway:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, has two wins (2006, 2013).
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, has one win (2017).
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road Camaro ZL1 1LE, has one win (2018).
* Ty Dillon, No. 13 GEICO Camaro ZL1 1LE, has been running at the finish in the past 45 races – tops among current drivers.
* At Daytona, Johnson will break a tie with Dale Earnhardt for sixth on the NASCAR Cup Series all-time list for consecutive starts with 549.
* Busch will make his 685th NASCAR Cup Series start.
* Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships.
* Hendrick Motorsports has eight victories in the race.

FOR THE FANS:
· Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Daytona International Speedway.
· Fans can check out an assortment of Chevrolet vehicles including: Blazer RS, Tahoe RST, Silverado 2500 HD High Country Diesel, Equinox Premier 2.0, Colorado ZR1, Trax Premier, Silverado 1500 High Country Diesel, Camaro ZL1, Malibu RS, Traverse Premier, 2020 Corvette Stingray.
· At the Chevrolet Display, fans can also view a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE race car.
· Other activities at the Team Chevy Racing Display include a variety of interactive games for adults and kids

TEAM CHEVY QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSIONS AT THE DISPLAY:
Thursday, February 13
· 3:00 p.m. – Brett Moffitt and Sheldon Creed

Friday, February 14
· 12:45 p.m. – Ty Majeski and Natalie Decker
· 4:30 p.m. – Austin Wayne Self
· 4:45 p.m. – Tyler Ankrum and Zane Smith
· 5:30 p.m. – Tommy Joe Martins

Saturday, February 15
· 9:15 a.m. – Justin Haley
· 10:00 a.m. – Ross Chastain
· 10:15 a.m. – Austin Dillon
· 12:45 p.m. – Myatt Snider

Sunday, February 16
· 9:50 a.m. – Kyle Larson
· 10:25 a.m. – Jimmie Johnson
· 11:20 a.m. – Chase Elliott
· 11:50 a.m. – Alex Bowman

Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation:
· Thursday, February 13th: 1:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
· Friday, February 14th: 11:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
· Saturday, February 15th: 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
· Sunday, February 16th: 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

QUOTABLE QUOTES:
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
BOWMAN ON WHAT DRIVERS LOOK FOR IN THE CLASH:
“Obviously it is the first on track opportunity in a racing environment with our new body, so just figuring out how it drafts and how it drives and learning whatever we can is key. That is a really different thing compared to anywhere else we go in the season, so not a lot of data. It is still great to get that data for other superspeedways. I think you can do some of that in practice, but the race conditions in the Clash are your best glimpse at how your car will run in the 500.”

BOWMAN ON THE PRESSURES OF WINNING THE DAYTONA 500:
“The 500 is a huge deal. It’s unique for us to start our season with the biggest race of the year. There are so many people there. It is such a crazy atmosphere. Every cup race is a big deal, but you walk out at driver introductions for the 500 and it is just a sea of people. It’s an amazing event and that would be a dream come true. I always look forward to it every year.”

GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF OF THE NO. 88 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
IVES ON THE ADVANTAGES OF THE CAMARO ZL1 1LE HAS THIS YEAR VERSUS LAST:
“It gives me a better balance. Basically, we focused on putting more air on the rear spoiler for the ability to free up the race car through the center of the corner. We’ll see how that plays out. But a lot of crew chiefs, drivers and engineers know how difficult it is to produce rear downforce in these race cars and also continue to keep them turning. Everyone at GM and all the engineers and key partners did a great job of accomplishing that goal that we set out for them. We’ll see when the races start.”

IVES ON HIS OFF SEASON:
“It was awesome. I never relax; I’m always working on something. I did go hunting up in Michigan and I was up there for Thanksgiving. We stayed here for Christmas. I took my son racing a few times. He’s only five, but he’s racing box stocks. I took him to the go-cart track and a lot of different things.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
SO MUCH HISTORY HERE FOR YOU. HOW MUCH DO YOU LOOK FORWARD TO THE DAYTONA 500?
“Yeah, it was just good to get back to the track. We race so many times throughout the year and once you get a little bit of time off, for me, I feel like when it gets to be February or the middle of February, I’m ready to go back. And that’s been the case this year. So, I’m just excited to be here and get back in the groove. This is the first of a lot of racing ahead, so we’re just excited to get back in the groove, number one, and hopefully put on a good show for all the people that’ll be here next week.”

YOUR DAD WON THIS RACE 35 YEARS AGO, HIS FIRST 500. DO YOU COME IN HERE WITH ANY DIFFERENT STRATEGY THIS YEAR OR BEING IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME?
“Yeah, it’s tough. I really don’t know what the right thing to do is here. I wish I did, but I don’t. It’s been a hard thing because you see guys be really aggressive win. I’ve seen guys be really conservative win. There doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of consistency as to who that is and when it is. I don’t know. Kind of play it by ear on Sunday.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA ‘COLOR OF THE YEAR’ CAMARO ZL1 1LE
“I’m excited to finally get the 2020 season started. The No. 24 team had a good momentum going the last half of 2019 and I think we should come out even stronger this time round. I think I’ve prepared even harder this offseason compared to any other offseason, just getting prepared in every way possible. Daytona was pretty good to us last year, with winning the pole for the DAYTONA 500 and then finishing second in the summer. The Clash may not have ended how we wanted but I think we learned a lot that we can use for the 500. A win would definitely top things off and show all the hard work we’ve been putting in as a team.”

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CATERPILLAR CAMARO ZL1 1LE
THIS WILL BE YOUR SECOND DAYTONA 500 WITH RCR. HOW WILL THE EXPERIENCE FROM LAST YEAR HELP WITH THIS YEAR?
“It’s nice to have last year’s DAYTONA 500 experience under my belt. Last year, there were a lot of nerves since we had to race our way into the race and just in general with it being my first ever start with RCR. This year, we’re locked into the event and can focus more on the handling of our No. 8 Caterpillar Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, which is great given it will be the first big race it’s out on the track. Every DAYTONA 500 is unpredictable but having the one experience from last year does help. I’m excited for the season to get started at Daytona and to see what we can do during my first year in the NASCAR Cup Series.”

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS / TRACK OFFROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE
ARE YOU CHOMPING AT THE BIT TO START THE 2020 SEASON?
“I’m pretty excited for it. Daytona is always fun and as soon as you pull through the tunnel there is excitement. Just an adrenaline that pulls through your body and through your brain that makes you excited for the race.”

WHAT ARE YOUR ON-TRACK GOALS THIS SEASON? ANY SPECIFIC RACES YOU WANT TO WIN, OR A PLAYOFF RUN, PERHAPS?
“Our on-track goals for 2020 are to win multiple races this year. In order to win a championship in the NASCAR Cup Series you need to win multiple races, so that’s one of our goals. There are places I would like to get better at, and places that I feel more confident at. Charlotte Motor Speedway has always been a good track for me. I’d like to go there and run well in the Coca-Cola 600 in May, and then I would like to get better at road course racing. That is one thing I’ve put on my shoulders for many years, just trying to make it better, and to be more competitive at it.”

WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS SEASON?
“I think what I’m most looking forward to this season is getting back out onto the track and competing for wins. I feel like we ended the year at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a really good run and anytime you finish the last race off with a strong finish, it makes you excited about the next season. I feel like we’ve gotten better as a group within the Chevrolet camp going into 2020 and we just want to go out there and compete strong.”

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE TRACK, AND WHY?
“My favorite track would probably be Daytona International Speedway, simply because of the memories there. It’s filled with history, and it’s been a fun track for me. It’s been wild there. A lot of things have happened. I’ve torn down the fence and won the Daytona 500, so I have to choose Daytona just from the historical perspective”

ARE YOU A GUY WHO LIKES TO PLAY IT CONSERVATELY DURING SPEEDWEEKS TO MAKE SURE YOUR CAR MAKES IT TO THE DAYTONA 500, OR ARE YOU A GUY WHO IS A LITTE BIT MORE AGGRESSIVE SO YOU CAN FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT YOUR CAR CAN DO?
“It’s a good mix. I think you have to be able to just pick your battles throughout the time leading up to the Daytona 500. If you can score some points in the Duels that’s a nice thing. It’s an advantage going into the season. The Duels are one of the only races that pay points that you can really bank and use to help you get into the Playoffs. Points matter so much. Every year it seems to make a difference when it comes down to those final spots available to make the Playoffs. I like to pick my battles.”

WHAT MAKES THE DAYTONA 500 SO SPECIAL TO YOU?
“The history behind the Daytona 500 is what makes the race so special to me. Being able to be there with RCR during the times when Dale Earnhardt was able to win, and then Kevin Harvick and later on, myself 20 years after Dale’s win. We’ve celebrated some big moments at Daytona as part of the RCR family. That makes Daytona very special to me.”

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE
“I’m really looking forward to the DAYTONA 500 on Sunday. Winning the pole last weekend was so special for so many reasons for me personally, for my partners at Kroger who have been so supportive of me during my short time at JTG Daugherty Racing and have been longtime partners of the team, and for my team. The guys worked so hard during the offseason to get these cars ready and to see that pay off right out of the gate is huge for us. We’re looking forward to building on that momentum this weekend in our Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE, and I really want to put on a great showing for all of our Kroger partners that will be in attendance.”

RYAN PREECE, NO. 37 COTTONELLE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
“I’m definitely ready to get the 2020 season going in our No. 37 Cottonelle Camaro ZL1 1LE. First off, congratulations to our teammates on their pole victory last Sunday. I know how hard everyone has been working to get both of our cars ready, and we both showed strong speed in qualifying on Sunday. We didn’t do a ton of drafting last weekend, so I’m excited to see how our Cottonelle Chevy will be in the draft on Thursday night. We’re racing in the same duel as our teammate, and it will be great practice for us to be able to work together and see what we can do to have a great finish on Sunday afternoon.”

BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 UNITED STATES AIR FORCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
“Every time we come down to Daytona or Talladega, especially for the 500, we always have a really good car in race trim. We’re not very good by ourselves, slow and a little draggy. But we always seem to shoot right to the front. We’ll have to manage our race, make it to the third stage. Re-watching last year’s race, we got taken out before the first stage ended. So, we just have to position ourselves and put ourselves in the best spot possible.”

Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2019): 39
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)

Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015

Drivers Championships:
Total (1949-2018): 31
First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)
Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)

Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016

Event Victories:
Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)

2019 STATISTICS:
Wins: 7
Poles: 15
Laps Led: 2,096
Top-five finishes: 45
Top-10 finishes: 110

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 786 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 714
Laps led to date: 234,306
Top-five finishes to date: 4,014
Top-10 finishes to date: 8,282

Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date

General Motors: 1,120
Chevrolet: 786
Pontiac: 154
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65

Ford: 786
Ford: 686
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 191
Chrysler: 59

Toyota: 143

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.