Category: Truck Series

Toyota Racing – Kyle Benjamin
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS)
Martinsville Speedway – March 23, 2018

DGR-Crosley driver Kyle Benjamin was made available to the media at Martinsville Speedway:

KYLE BENJAMIN, No. 54 Crosley Brands/Tropicana Toyota Tundra, DGR-Crosley

Talk about your approach for this weekend
“The main thing is trying to make it to the end. If you make it to the end, you’ll have a shot to win. Just got to try to get my truck right today. First off, I want to thank all the guys at DGR for the opportunity to be behind the wheel of this truck. It means a lot to me, especially coming here to a track that I’ve wanted to race at my entire life. I’ve actually never even seen it in person, so this is going to be a whole new experience for me – short track racing, which is what I’m used to, so excited to do that again. Like I said, just making it to the end, keeping the fenders on it and seeing what happens.”

What does it mean to be able to drive for DGR-Crosley this weekend?
“It just means everything to get the opportunity. You work your whole life to get here. You’re kind of fighting tooth and nail to try and make it to the top ultimately. It gets difficult around the truck series and just getting all the opportunities you can sitting in the seat as much as possible and trying to get up there at the right time. A lot of it is timing too. You got to do the right things on the track and time it, but it’s trying to stay optimistic. Do the best you can behind the wheel is all you can really do. It does mean everything to me to get opportunities from DGR. Been fortunate for the Gibbs piece. I’ve been really fortunate so far and thankful for what I’ve had already and hopefully it turns into more.”

Is this a one race deal with DGR-Crosley?
“Yes, one race.”

What has been the anticipation for tomorrow’s race?
“Pretty high actually. I haven’t been in the seat in a while. Just trying to keep the rust knocked off you know running tracks like Greeneville-Pickens and coming here and doing the best I can. Like I said earlier, really all you can do is the best you can. You don’t have to worry about the things that can happen. Just try to work on the things you can control and perform to the best of your abilities. If you do that, then you’ll be happy or I’ll be happy at least.”

Toyota Racing – Harrison Burton, Todd Gilliland and Noah Gragson
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS)
Martinsville Speedway – March 23, 2018

Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers Harrison Burton, Todd Gilliland and Noah Gragson were made available to the media at Martinsville Speedway:

HARRISON BURTON, No. 51 DEX Imaging Toyota Tundra, Kyle Busch Motorsports
How much does all of your grassroots racing apply to here at Martinsville?
“I think racing short tracks all the time, it’s definitely a bit of an advantage I guess because you’re used to kind of the – short track racing is a different, it’s a whole ‘nother ball game. It’s a whole ‘nother level of intensity and a whole ‘nother kind of feeling behind it you know. You know you’re going to get hit. You know you’re going to have to hit someone at some point, so there’s going to be a different mindset and going into that, so being in the rhythm of that I think definitely helps and just having experience on short tracks racing guys like this. Noah’s on Snapchat. They’re normally hard to beat so I think that us having short track experience definitely helps.”

This year, you’ll run at more tracks that you haven’t run in the past after you turn 18 at the end of the season. Talk about this season and running those first-time tracks.
“That changes October, so I kind of get the last four races of the year at KBM, so I’m still kind of on a part time schedule, jumping around and in the races that I can be. There’s other guys in the mile and a halfs. It’s a balance, you know. In between I want to move up, but I got to learn too. I got time and I’m taking that time and learning as much as I can. I’ll make my first 1.5-mile starts in ARCA cars and stuff like that this year and I’ll also be running – I’ll run Texas and Homestead at the end of the year. Those will be fun in the Truck Series and hopefully we can go out and run good. It’s a different ball game. Like I said, short tracks, mile and a halfs, all that’s so different. It’s a big learning curve, but I’m ready for it.”

TODD GILLILAND, No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra, Kyle Busch Motorsports
You run Martinsville and then after Kansas, you can run full-time the rest of the season. How does that feel?
“Last night I couldn’t sleep man. I was so excited. It was tough to go watch the first three races, but I think that’s something that we needed to do – spend more time with the team. Try and make up for as much time that we lost together. These guys that have been working together, so we just need to keep up that relationship. I think everything has been really smooth so far, but we’ll see. Luckily we have a lot of practice today and we can kind of move at our own pace this first week and then come tomorrow, it’s go time. Yeah, it’s been really tough though to watch someone else get in your truck for sure.”

How hard is it to get out of the truck and then get out of the truck and then back in?
“It was even hard from New Smyrna to now. I had to go all off season to build up to New Smyrna and then only race one race and then wait you know another month. It’s been hard like I said. Just spending a lot of time at the shop and a lot of time at the simulator just trying to make up for lost time kind of like I’m not missing anything at all. That’s what we’re hoping for. I wish I could keep racing, but soon enough we’ll be racing every week.”

What’s the dynamic like on a weekend like this when all three of you are friends off the track, but trying to win the race?
“I think that’s been something that’s very special, just growing up with everyone you know. Us three have raced against each other for a long time. Like you said, we’re all very competitive and we’ve raced – me and Harrison have raced hard. We’re just out here doing our best and I think it helps having teammates that you get along with. You can communicate information a little bit better, a little bit easier. I think everything is just going to flow together this season and I think we’re going to have some fast trucks.”

NOAH GRAGSON, No. 18 Safelite Toyota Tundra, Kyle Busch Motorsports
Talk about being back at Martinsville and what your approach is for the weekend.
“It’s a privilege to be able to come back here and race again. I was fortunate last year to be able to win the fall race here in the truck series. Ran pretty good here both times and finished fourth in this race last year, so just like I said very fortunate to get back here. Going to be working with my teammates Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton this weekend. I feel like we’re probably the three best of buddies as teammates, so just being able to work with them and be on the same page is going to be key.”

How much confidence do you come back to Martinsville having already won here.
“I have a lot of confidence in myself, but I’m trying not to – I don’t know how to put it, but try not to rely on that. I’m trying to treat this weekend as if I’ve never been here before and that I’m going in here and I’m trying to learn all weekend and really focus on executing and knowing what I can do because I feel like if I come into this weekend and I say “Oh, well I won here before. I know how to do it,” that really doesn’t do me any good for a young driver. Maybe Jimmie Johnson or guys who have won here a lot of times, maybe they can do that, but I don’t feel like I can do that. Young driver just trying to learn as much as I can. I’m not putting any pressure on myself. I’m just trying to execute all weekend.”

Talk about starting the season with a more full schedule on the front end compared to years past?
“I think there’s two things – one for the whole series and then one for me. The first thing is for the series, I feel like it – we used to go from Daytona to Atlanta and then have four weeks off and I mean I only got to do it last year, so it wasn’t like it was a huge deal to me, but I wanted to be in the race car in those three or four off weeks, so it kind of shortened up that time in between the big breaks. I know we have a long break after this race. I’m racing a couple of other series. Also for me this year it’s a little bit different in 2018 because I’m living in North Carolina now in Huntersville and I can be with the team and I can manage my time a little bit better. It felt like longer last year because I was living in Las Vegas still doing high school, so that took up a little bit of my time. I couldn’t be with the team during the long break and couldn’t be learning this whole time, so 2018 it’s a lot better for me. I feel like I’m managing my time better living on the East Coast and being able to go to the shop and talk to my crew chief, Rudy (Fugle), and go to TRD (Toyota Racing Development) and do some sim and just practice and learn. I think that’s the biggest thing and I feel like it’s been not that long since we’ve been out on the track in Las Vegas.”

How important is it to win your second race to prove the first one wasn’t a fluke?
“I think it’ll be good. Hopefully that race win can come this weekend. I haven’t done it yet, so I can’t say that I’ve done it. I can’t say what it’s going to be like. Hopefully I can dominate a little more this weekend. I know there’s a lot of guys that are going to be gunning for each other out there on the race track. I mean it’s so close these days. You can’t get away from each other where before you might come here with a really good package and now you’ve got 10 guys that have a really good package and everything is so close. I know we should be in the hunt this weekend. Been working with Harrison (Burton) and Todd (Gilliland) throughout this past week on – just talking to each other about the line around this place and how we can – I mean we were all three in the top five last year at Martinsville, so just working together, working hard. Hopefully that’ll help my confidence getting my second career win this weekend.”

In 2018, you’ve led laps in every race. How important is that to continue as the season progresses?
“That’s really big. It shows that we have the speed. We just need to execute a little bit better. I felt like I made a driver mistake on my part at Daytona. Atlanta we capitalized on a mistake with our team and then just had a tire problem at Vegas that took me out of contention. We’ve been up front pretty much every race. We’ve won two stages this year. The first stage at Atlanta and the first stage at Vegas, so just got to keep on working hard. Keep on focusing on what needs to be done and hopefully it all works out.”

What’s the dynamic like on a weekend like this when all three of you are friends off the track, but trying to win the race?
“We all joke around, mess around off the track, but when it’s time to be serious and it’s time to get to crunch time and put our racing hats on, I think we all are like a light switch, we flip very easily. On the race track I think we all three want to be in a KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports) top three finish, 1-2-3. If we all are 1-2-3, then we’re going to be battling hard. I think together, collectively, we all want the best for the organization of Kyle Busch Motorsports and we all know we have fast Toyota Tundras, so now it’s just working together until we get to the front and then it’s game on.”

Team: No. 22 Don’t mess with Texas | Kreuz Market Chevrolet Silverado
Driver: Austin Wayne Self
Crew Chief: Joey Cohen
Follow the Team: @NieceMotorsport; @AustinWSelf

Self on Racing at Martinsville: “I haven’t been the greatest qualifier at Martinsville, but that’s something I’m looking to change this weekend. We have three practice sessions on Friday and I think that will help a bunch.

“If we can get ourselves in a good race pace trim, we can turn some of our attention towards qualifying. With the weather looking iffy this weekend – it’s important to know how balanced our truck will be with different setups.”

Self at Martinsville: Self will make his third NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) start at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday. His best finish came in 2016, where he crossed the finish line 15th in his first Martinsville Speedway start.

Self’s crew chief, Joey Cohen has a NCWTS victory at the half-mile track, which came in 2017, with Chase Elliott behind the wheel.

Recapping Las Vegas: Self qualified 19th for the Friday night race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Self battled back from a flat tire to finish the evening in 16th.

“I was very happy with my truck; we had a lot of speed and I could put the truck where I needed to,” said Self. “I hate we had the right front go down, but I’m still very pleased and excited with the fast Silverados we have.”

New Partnership: Kreuz Market will support the No. 22 Chevrolet in the fourth race of the season.

With its landmark servings, offering sausage and BBQ, without sauce or forks, in a sprawling, rustic cafeteria-like setting, Kreuz Market will provide pre-race meals for Self and the No. 22 team this season.

In addition to its laid-back country-like atmosphere, Kreuz Market also smokes Texas barbecue brisket, ribs, sausage and pork, which can be ordered from Kreuzmarket.com and shipped nationwide.

“I am thrilled to be partnered with another proud Texas company,” said Self. “I’m excited to have a taste of home each weekend at the track, and there’s no doubt we’ll have some of the best eating of anyone in the garage, thanks to Kreuz Market.”

On The Truck: TxDOT’s Don’t mess with Texas litter prevention campaign has been educating Texans about litter prevention since 1986. For more information, visit dontmesswithtexas.org.

About Niece Motorsports: Niece Motorsports is owned by United States Marine Corps Veteran Al Niece. In 2018, Niece Motorsports enters its second full season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, fielding two full-time teams with Austin Wayne Self and Justin Fontaine. Niece also owns Niece Equipment, which has for over 30 years provided clients with reliable products at competitive prices. Niece Equipment’s reputation is built on service, integrity and dependability. The company provides water and fuel/lube trucks that are engineered with quality and durability in mind for the construction and mining industry. Follow the team on Facebook and Instagram @NieceMotorsports as well as twitter @NieceMotorsport.

Team: No. 45 ProMATIC Automation | Superior Essex Chevrolet Silverado
Driver: Justin Fontaine
Crew Chief: Darrell Morrow
Follow the Team: @NieceMotorsport; @driverfontaine

Fontaine on Racing at Martinsville: “The break was nice, but I’m ready to get back to work. Everyone at Niece has worked diligently this season to make sure we come to the track with fast trucks.

“Martinsville is a tough place, but we’re optimistic about the first short track race of the year. Martinsville is such a momentum place. You really need to be able to get the truck to maneuver through the corners, so you can carry the speed on the straightaways.”

Fontaine at Martinsville: Fontaine returns to the site of his first ever NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start, coming in 2016. Saturday’s race will mark Fontaine’s second start at the ‘Paper Clip’.

Recapping Las Vegas: Fontaine put in a solid performance at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, earning his career-best finish of ninth. The result is also Niece Motorsports’ best finish to date.

“I’m really proud of our result at Las Vegas,” said Fontaine. “We’ve now gotten Niece Motorsports their two best finishes in the first three races of the year. Everyone on my team did an amazing job all night, and we’re continuing to improve every week. Thanks to Superior Essex and ProMATIC Automation for all of their support this year.”

On the Truck: Fontaine’s No. 45 Chevrolet will carry the ProMATIC Automation, Inc. colors in Friday’s race. ProMATIC Automation, Inc. specializes in the design and build of custom factory automation equipment.

ProMATIC Automation, Inc. has extensive experience in the integration of high-level automation technologies like robotics, laser, vision, and dispensing systems along with many years of combined experience in the design and machining of custom manufactured components.

About Niece Motorsports: Niece Motorsports is owned by United States Marine Corps Veteran Al Niece. In 2018, Niece Motorsports enters its second full season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, fielding two full-time teams with Austin Wayne Self and Justin Fontaine. Niece also owns Niece Equipment, which has for over 30 years provided clients with reliable products at competitive prices. Niece Equipment’s reputation is built on service, integrity and dependability. The company provides water and fuel/lube trucks that are engineered with quality and durability in mind for the construction and mining industry. Follow the team on Facebook and Instagram @NieceMotorsports as well as twitter @NieceMotorsport.

NASCAR Pinty’s Series Champion Kennington Returns to No. 96 Toyota Camry

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (March 21, 2018) — Gordon Brothers, the global advisory, restructuring and investment firm, will adorn the No. 96 Toyota Camry fielded by Gaunt Brothers Racing (GBR) and driven by D.J. Kennington in this Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway (Va.).

“GBR is pleased to partner with Gordon Brothers this weekend at Martinsville,” said Marty Gaunt, GBR owner. “Partnering with Gordon Brothers helps GBR to grow. We take pride in bringing new companies into the Cup Series and helping them benefit from their participation in NASCAR.”

“Gordon Brothers is excited to partner with the GBR team this weekend,” said Jim Burke, Director of Gordon Brothers, Commercial and Industrial. “It’s a great fit given our experience and capabilities within professional motorsports.”

Sunday’s event will mark the third race of the season for GBR and Kennington. Their two previous starts came in February at Daytona and earlier this month at ISM Raceway near Phoenix. It will also serve as Kennington’s first Cup Series short track start. He made two Martinsville starts in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series competition, scoring a best finish of 17th in 2010.

“I’m pumped to get back on the track,” said Kennington, two-time champion of NASCAR’s Pinty’s Series. “At the end of the Phoenix race, we had our car handling where we wanted it. We’re still building our foundation for the shorter tracks and Martinsville should provide us a solid proving ground.”

About Gaunt Brothers Racing: Gaunt Brothers Racing, owned by Marty Gaunt, operates out of Mooresville, N.C. The Toyota team competes in select Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events. They were Daytona 500 participants in both 2017 and 2018. GBR previously fielded teams in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series and NASCAR Pinty’s Series, for drivers Alex Bowman and Jason Bowles and Canadian racers John Gaunt and D.J. Kennington, recording a victory in the Toyota All-Star Showdown and a track record qualifying time on the Toronto street course.

For more information, please visit gauntbrothersracing.com.

About Gordon Brothers: Since 1903, Gordon Brothers has helped lenders, operating executives, advisors, and investors move forward through change. The firm brings a powerful combination of expertise and capital to clients, developing customized solutions on an integrated or standalone basis across four service areas: valuations, dispositions, operations, and investments. Whether to fuel growth or facilitate strategic consolidation, Gordon Brothers partners with companies in the retail, commercial, and industrial sectors to put assets to their highest and best use. Gordon Brothers conducts more than $70 billion worth of dispositions and appraisals annually. Gordon Brothers is headquartered in Boston, with 25 offices across five continents.

For more information, please visit gordonbrothers.com.

CODY COUGHLIN
No. 2 JEGS.com Chevrolet Silverado

Martinsville Stats
2starts, Best Finish: 19th (Spring, 2017)

Additional Info
– Coughlin will pilot chassis no. 026; a chassis used only one previous time in 2017, by Kaz Grala, at the fall Martinsville race, where he finished seventh.
– After finishing eighth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Coughlin jumped to 11th in the NCWTS driver point standings.

Quote
“Last year proved to be very challenging at Martinsville Speedway, but I think that will change this year with GMS Racing.Hopefully I can use my past short track experience and apply it.

“Martinsville is one of the most mentally draining race tracks we go to. You have to be almost perfect every single lap while hitting your marks, braking and throttle control. One mistake can cost you a lot quickly.”

 

JOHNNY SAUTER
No. 21 Allegiant Chevrolet Silverado

Martinsville Stats
20 starts, 3 wins, 8top-fives, 11 top-10s, 1 pole

Additional Info
– The No. 21 team will utilize GMS chassis no. 102 at Martinsville Speedway. Sauter has piloted this truck in the last three Martinsville races, finishing no worse than third and earning a win in the October 2016 race.
– Sauter has earned a top-three result in each of the first three races of the season to hold a 39 point lead in the NCWTS standings heading into Martinsville.

Quotes
What makes you so good at Martinsville Speedway?
“Handling is important, but I like that track and I think that helps. There’s a lot of guys you talk to, some don’t like this particular track or the one the next week, so I feel like when I go there I’ve got a little extra pep in my step. Winning races there obviously helps but it’s a rhythm-type racetrack, you’ve got to manage your stuff. It’s good short track racing. That’s what I like about it so much. It reminds me of what we started doing when I was younger. Short track racing is the best for me, the most fun, and that’s what Martinsville is.”

Is it tough to manage your patience at Martinsville Speedway?
“It is tough. Especially if you qualify well and you have track position, but you elect to do a certain

pit sequence and a lot of guys stay out. You find yourself shuffled through the field, maybe restarting 12th, and you’re on the outside of row six. That’s when it’s tough to take a deep breath and say ‘okay you’ve got better tires, you just got to let this thing get sorted out’. That’s the hard part. Even when I was younger that was the hard part, because you just want to charge, charge, charge, and go. It’s just a lot of give and take at Martinsville. You’ve got guys that will chop you and it’s not that they did it on purpose, but it’s that constant – you’re always watching the other guy, almost as much as you’re focused on doing what you’re doing, to make sure you don’t get in trouble.”

 

JUSTIN HALEY
No. 24 Fraternal Order of Eagles Chevrolet Silverado

Martinsville Stats
4starts, Best Finish: 11th (October 2017)

Additional Info
– Haley will run GMS chassis no. 103. In 2017, this truck was taken to victory lane by Chase Elliott in the Martinsville Spring race and later was driven by Haley in October, when he earned his best result at the Ridgeway, Va. track.
– Following a runner-up finish at Daytona, Haley muscled through two tough races with finishes outside of the top-20. Currently sitting 16th in the NCWTS point standings, Haley looks to turn his luck around at Martinsville.
Quote
“Martinsville is such a tough place to race at because there’s just not a lot of passing without abuse. It’s hard to find the right package to be fast there. To find speed, you’ve got to hustle it and that’s not something we’re used to doing anymore because we’ve got so many mile-and-a-half races. Then, you go back to a short track like that and it’s hard. We’ve made a lot of improvements to our short track program so hopefully, we’ll be really good there.”

 

DALTON SARGEANT
No. 25 Performance Plus Motor Oil Chevrolet Silverado

Martinsville Stats
1 start, Finish: 28th (Fall, 2015)

Additional Info
– Looking to make his second start at the half-mile paperclip, Sargeant took part in the NCWTS rookie test at Martinsville Speedway one week ago. Teammates Johnny Sauter and Cody Coughlin were also in attendance at the test for observation and feedback.
– Sargeant will pilot chassis no. 114 this weekend. This chassis was raced five times last year by Kaz Grala, including last season’s spring race at Martinsville Speedway where he finished 14th. Chassis no. 114 is also the same chassis Ben Kennedy piloted to his first NCWTS victory in 2016 at Bristol Motor Speedway. In total this chassis has one win, three top-five and seven top-10 finishes across 11 races and three drivers.
– Securing a sixth-place finish three weeks ago at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Sargeant is currently eighth in the NCWTS driver point standings, only two points behind seventh-place.

Quote
“I think Martinsville (Speedway) should be pretty good for us. I was able to test there last week in the rookie test and it went pretty well. My crew chief Doug Randolph helped me quite a bit, and he’s seemed to do well there in the past as well. Plus, I’ll really try to lean on my teammate Johnny Sauter while we’re there. I was able to run at Martinsville in 2015 and one of the big things I did then was just follow Johnny around to see the line he would run. He definitely knows how to get around that place. I just plan on applying everything I’ve learned from him and Doug, plus my short track experience, and hopefully we can get a good finish, if not a win, for our Performance Plus team.”

 

ABOUT GMS RACING
GMS Racing competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with drivers Cody Coughlin, Johnny Sauter, Justin Haley and Dalton Sargeant, and the NASCAR XFINITY Series with Spencer Gallagher. Since the team’s start in 2014, GMS Racing has grown to occupy several buildings located in Statesville, N.C. The campus also includes operations for GMS Fabrication.

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