Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Tag: Dale Earnhardt Jr

Brandon Jones capitalizes with a wild Xfinity victory at Martinsville

Brandon Jones seized an opportunity in the second of two overtime attempts to overtake teammate Ty Gibbs on the final lap and win the Call 811 Before You Dig 250 on April 8. It was a wild Friday night at Martinsville Speedway with on-track chaos, a multitude of cautions and flaring tempers ensuing throughout the event, and even between two young guns.

The 25-year-old Jones from Atlanta, Georgia, utilized pit strategy to win the second stage in a one-lap dash while on worn tires. After pitting prior to the start of the final stage, he methodically carved his way to the front and was up in the top five under the final 10 laps. Then through a series of late carnages and with the event sent into two overtime attempts, Jones intimidated his teammate Gibbs before managing to draw dead even with his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate through the backstretch on the final lap. He then managed to clear Gibbs as Gibbs got tangled with Sam Mayer, whom he confronted following the event, to muscle away and claim his first victory of the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season.

With on-track qualifying occurring on Thursday, Ty Gibbs, winner of last weekend’s Xfinity event at Richmond Raceway, notched his third consecutive Xfinity pole position in recent weeks after posting a pole-winning lap at 95.985 mph in 19.728 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Justin Allgaier, who posted a fast lap at 95.496 mph in 19.829 seconds.

Prior to the event, Noah Gragson, Derek Griffith, Kyle Weatherman and Howie Disavino III dropped to the rear due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective cars. Another competitor who dropped to the rear due to unapproved adjustments was Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was making his lone Xfinity start of the season.

When the green flag waved and the race started amid a brief delay due to rain, Gibbs launched ahead of rookie Sheldon Creed, Justin Allgaier and the field with an early advantage as he went on to lead the first lap. Shortly after, the first caution of the event flew due to a blown engine and smoke billowing out of the No. 47 car piloted by Brennan Poole that started in the first turn.

Thirteen laps later, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gibbs prevailed in a full side-by-side battle against Allgaier to retain the lead while Creed battled and prevailed in a brief battle with Allgaier for the runner-up spot. In the midst of the battles, Brett Moffitt pitted after falling off the pace due to a transmission issue.

Through the first 25 scheduled laps, Gibbs was leading by more than a second over Allgaier followed by Ryan Truex, Landon Cassill and Creed while Daniel Hemric, Ryan Sieg, AJ Allmendinger, Riley Herbst and Josh Berry were in the top 10. By then, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was in 31st.

On Lap 39, the caution returned due to Howie Disavino III stopping on the track in Turn 4. Under caution, some drivers including Earnhardt Jr., Noah Gragson, Jade Buford and Myatt Snider pitted while the rest, led by Gibbs, remained on the track.

When the race restarted under green on Lap 45, Gibbs retained the lead while Allgaier retained second ahead of Ryan Truex. Behind, Creed and Cassill battled for fourth place while Ryan Sieg and Hemric battled for sixth. In addition, Josh Berry and Allmendinger battled for eighth place.

By Lap 50, Gibbs was leading by nearly half a second over Allgaier followed by Truex, Cassill and Hemric while Allmendinger, Brandon Jones, Berry, Sam Mayer and Creed were in the top 10.

When the first stage concluded on Lap 60, Gibbs claimed his second stage victory of the season. Allgaier settled in second followed by Truex, Cassill, Hemric, Allmendinger, Brandon Jones, Berry, Mayer and Creed. By then, Gragson was up in 13th place while Earnhardt Jr. was in 22nd place.

During the stage break, a majority of the field led by Gibbs pitted, while the rest, led by Gragson remained on the track.

The second stage started on Lap 69 as Gragson and Myatt Snider occupied the front row. At the start, Gragson retained the lead while Snider and rookie Austin Hill battled for the runner-up spot. Behind, Gibbs was in fourth in front of Earnhardt Jr.

Four laps later, the caution flew when a bump from Joe Graf Jr. sent Jade Buford spinning against the outside wall between Turns 3 and 4.

By Lap 79, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gragson rocketed away with the lead entering the first turn while Gibbs fended off Austin Hill to retain the runner-up spot. Behind, Earnhardt Jr. battled with Snider for fourth place in front of Truex and Allgaier. Shortly after, Earnhardt Jr. was slowly being overtaken and was falling out of the top 10 as he was trapped on the outside lane.

Back at the front by Lap 90, Gibbs, who reassumed the lead over Gragson on two laps earlier, was leading by half a second over Gragson followed by Hill, Brandon Jones and Allgaier, who wheel-hopped but managed to lose one spot in the process. Behind, Snider was bumped and shuffled out of the racing groove by Creed while racing in the top 15.

Through the first 100 laps of the event, Gibbs continued to lead by more than a second over Gragson while Hill, Brandon Jones, Allgaier, Truex, Allmendinger, Mayer, Cassill and Hemric were in the top 10. Berry, Earnhardt Jr., Riley Herbst, Creed and Jeremy Clements were in the top 15 followed by Ryan Sieg, Jeb Burton, Brandon Brown, Derek Griffith and Alex Labbe.

Two laps later, the caution returned when Joe Graf Jr. sent Stefan Parsons for a spin between Turns 1 and 2.

By Lap 107, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gibbs continued to lead followed by teammate Brandon Jones while Gragson fell back to third place in front of Hill and Allgaier.

As the laps in the second stage dwindled, Gibbs remained as the leader by nearly a second over teammate Brandon Jones and Gragson while Allgaier was up in fourth place in front of Hill, Truex, Allmendinger, Mayer, Cassill and Berry.

Then on Lap 115, the caution flew when Anthony Alfredo turned Derek Griffith in Turn 1. Under caution, a majority of the field led by Gibbs pitted while the rest led by Brandon Jones remained on the track.

During a one-lap dash to conclude the second stage scheduled for Lap 120, Brandon Jones was able to muscle away from Cassill and the field to claim his first stage victory of the season. Cassill retained second place followed by Ryan Sieg, Brandon Brown, David Starr, Anthony Alfredo, Stefan Parsons, Jeremy Clements, Riley Herbst and Shane Lee while Gibbs settled in 11th.

Under the stage break, some led by Brandon Jones pitted while the rest led by Stefan Parsons remained on the track.

With 122 laps remaining, the final stage started. At the start, Parsons retained the lead through the first two turns until Herbst and Gibbs made a three-wide move on Parsons through the backstretch to move into first and second. Shortly after, a Monster Energy duo occurred between Herbst and Gibbs for the top spot before the latter prevailed.

With 115 laps remaining, Gibbs was out in front by nearly nine-tenths of a second over Herbst, who was being pressured by Allgaier for more. Gragson, Truex, Allmendinger, Earnhardt Jr., Parsons, Berry and Hemric followed pursuit in the top 10.

Down to the final 100 laps of the event, Gibbs continued to lead by more than a second over Allgaier while third-place Gragson trailed by one-and-a-half seconds. Ryan Truex and Allmendinger were in the top five while Herbst, Berry, Hemric, Earnhardt Jr. and Creed were running in the top 10.

Six laps later, the caution flew when the runner-up competitor of Allgaier slapped the outside wall in Turn 1 after wheel-hopping, thus sustaining rear-end damage to his No. 7 BRANDT Chevrolet Camaro. Under caution, a majority of the field led by Gibbs pitted while others like Creed, Brandon Jones, Brandon Brown, Anthony Alfredo and Matt Mills remained on the track.

With 88 laps remaining, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Creed retained the lead ahead of Jones and Mills while Gibbs muscle his No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Supra to fourth place.

Four laps later, the caution flew when Ryan Truex spun his No. 18 ShopUSAPickleball.com Toyota Supra between Turns 1 and 2 following contact with Alex Labbe.

Another five laps later, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Brandon Jones continued to lead followed by teammate Gibbs and the field. Just then, the caution returned when Berry spun in Turn 3 after cutting a left-rear tire on his No. 8 Harrison’s Chevrolet Camaro, an issue that started when he made contact with his boss Earnhardt Jr. entering the backstretch.

With 72 laps remaining, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Brandon Jones retained the lead followed by Gibbs, Creed and the field through the first two turns. Then, the caution returned when Matt Mills backed his car into the outside wall in Turn 3 after receiving contact from Herbst.

Eight laps later, the race proceeded under green. At the start, teammates Brandon Jones and Gibbs battled for the lead until he took over the lead another two laps later. Following a brief duel with his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Gibbs managed to retain the top spot. Shortly after, Gragson moved into second place followed by Allmendinger while Jones was trapped on the outside lane.

Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Gibbs was leading by nearly seven-tenths of a second over Gragson while third-place Allmendinger trailed by more than two seconds. Brandon Jones and Creed were in the top five followed by Herbst, Hemric, Mayer, Cassill and Brandon Brown while Earnhardt Jr. was in 11th place in front of Alfredo, Jeb Burton, Hill, Ryan Sieg and Ryan Truex.

Fifteen laps later and with the leaders surrounded in lapped traffic, Gibbs continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Gragson, who continued to pressure the leader for the lead and with a potential win in sight. Allmendinger, meanwhile, remained in third place followed by Jones and Mayer while Creed, Herbst, Cassill, Hemric and Earnhardt Jr. occupied the top 10.

Then with 30 laps remaining, the caution flew when Parsons lost his brakes and got into the outside wall in Turn 2.

Down to the final 24 laps of the event, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gibbs cleared Gragson to retain the lead while Gragson managed to fend off Allmendinger and Mayer to retain second place. Soon after, Mayer moved into third place over Allmendinger while Brandon Jones was in fifth place.

Just then, the caution flew when Hemric, who made contact with both Creed and Hill entering Turn 2, lost a left-rear tire and spun his No. 11 Cirkul Chevrolet Camaro between Turns 3 and 4. In the midst of Hemric’s incident, Earnhardt Jr. and Ryan Sieg made contact as Sieg’s rear bumper ripped off.

With 16 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Gibbs retained the lead with a strong race car while Mayer battled and overtook teammate Gragson for second place. Behind, Brandon Jones and Allmendinger remained in the top five ahead of Herbst.

Two laps later, the caution flew when Jade Buford spun in Turn 1 as Derek Griffith sustained front-nose damage.

Down to the final eight laps of the event, the race proceeded under green. Just as Gibbs and Mayer briefly dueled for the top spot, the caution quickly returned when a stack-up and a bump from Berry sent Clements into Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 Hellmann’s Chevrolet Camaro, which sent Earnhardt sideways in the midst of the incoming field, though he was able to continue.

Under caution, some like Creed and Alfredo pitted while the rest led by Gibbs remained on the track.

With the event sent into overtime, the first overtime attempt did not last long as Mayer, who spun the tires on the outside lane, was bumped as he clipped Gragson, which sent Gragson’s No. 9 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro backward into the outside wall before he was t-boned by Jeb Burton. The incident sparked a multi-car wreck on the frontstretch that involved Alex Labbe, Mason Massey, Bayley Currey, Allgaier, Parsons, Derek Griffith, Parker Retzlaff, Alfredo, Snider, Berry, Kyle Weatherman and Brown while the second half of the field was blocked off by the carnage. The wreck forced NASCAR to place the event in a red flag situation as the on-track safety crew went to work to clear the carnage.

When the red flag was lifted and the second overtime attempt commenced under green, Gibbs briefly launched ahead of Mayer until Brandon Jones made the slightest of contact against teammate Gibbs, which got Gibbs loose entering the first turn as Jones tried to draw himself alongside Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota for the top spot through the backstretch.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Gibbs continued to lead while teammate Jones launched another attack on Gibbs for the lead entering the first turn. Through the first two turns, Jones, this time, managed to draw dead even with Gibbs. Then between Turns 3 and 4, Jones muscled his No. 19 Menards Toyota Supra out in front on the bottom lane while Mayer rubbed against Gibbs, which stalled the latter’s run to the finish. This allowed Jones to pull away as he crossed the finish line to steal the win in upset fashion.

With his first victory at Martinsville, Jones claimed his fifth Xfinity Series career victory in his 211th series start and his first since winning at Darlington Raceway in September 2020. He also became the sixth different winner, fifth series regular, through the first eight scheduled Xfinity events.

“What a day!” Jones exclaimed on FS1. “I can’t say that we could’ve played it out any better. I loved the call we made to get stage points. [I] Drove the thing all the way from the back to the front and had older tires than all those guys at the end. This is a driver’s race track right here. I’ve won in a lot of different places now and this is one that you have to get after it. Ty [Gibbs] ran a really hard race. [I] Can’t believe he cleared me there really early in Stage 3. Fun to beat him. He’s hot right now. He’s tough to beat, so that’s a good one…Really happy with the way it ended.”

In the midst of the on-track chaos, Landon Cassill came home in a career-best second place followed by Allmendinger, who claimed the second Dash 4 Cash $100,000 bonus a week after missing out on the bonus at Richmond Raceway. Allmendinger, Brandon Jones, Cassill and fourth-place finisher Austin Hill will contend for the third Dash 4 Cash bonus at Talladega Superspeedway scheduled for April 23.

Mayer completed the top five while Herbst, Ryan Truex, Gibbs, Ryan Sieg and Clements finished in the top 10.

Following the event, tempers flared on pit road between Gibbs and Mayer following their final lap incident. The post-race activity started with Gibbs ramming into the rear of Mayer’s car before both competitors confronted one another face-to-face as the punches and the shoves ensued, with Gibbs throwing punches across Mayer’s face and Mayer getting his left eye cut as the crew members and NASCAR officials got involved to separate both competitors. In the midst of the fight, a NASCAR official was injured and taken to the care center for evaluation. Following the chaos, both Gibbs and Mayer were summoned to the NASCAR hauler to meet with the officials.

“I tried to talk to [Mayer] and then, he got all over my face,” Gibbs said. “At that point, you got to start fighting. We got put in a bad position. The only thing I’m mad about is [Mayer] wasn’t gonna get past [Allmendinger] there and I just got hit in the left rear. It’s just frustrating. I just got drove into the fence at the end. I was on the other side of it last week, so that’s just part of it.”

“I had $100,000 in my sights and I was gonna do what I had to do to try and get that,” Mayer said. “I put the bumper to [Gibbs]. In my opinion, and we talked in the trailer, it was just a clean bump-and-run – and [Cassill)]kinda stuck it in there and kinda got us both crossed up and that’s kinda when it went to crap. I put the bumper to him. He came back over and he was upset and decided to throw a couple punches, but that’s fine by me. We talked about it. We’ll be good going forward, especially at Talladega. That’s a place where you don’t want to be enemies, so we’re gonna move on and be A-OK, keep our head down and go out and try to get a win next time.”

Following his late spin, Dale Earnhardt Jr. managed to finish 11th in his lone Xfinity start of the season.

There were 12 lead changes for seven different leaders. The race featured 16 cautions for 100 laps.

With his top-five result and a $100,000 bonus added to his paycheck, AJ Allmendinger leads the regular-season standings by 20 points over Ty Gibbs, 42 points over Noah Gragson, 89 over Brandon Jones and 94 over Josh Berry.

Results.

1. Brandon Jones, 28 laps led, Stage 2 winner

2. Landon Cassill

3. AJ Allmendinger

4. Austin Hill

5. Sam Mayer

6. Riley Herbst, one lap led

7. Ryan Truex

8. Ty Gibbs, 197 laps led, Stage 1 winner

9. Ryan Sieg

10. Jeremy Clements

11. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

12. Parker Retzlaff

13. Daniel Hemric

14. Anthony Alfredo

15. Alex Labbe

16. Kyle Weatherman

17. Bayley Currey

18. Matt Mills

19. Josh Berry

20. Noah Gragson, 23 laps led

21. Derek Griffith

22. Jade Buford, one lap down

23. David Starr, one lap down

24. Myatt Snider, one lap down

25. Ryan Vargas, one lap down

26. Joe Graf Jr., one lap down

27. Shane Lee, one lap down

28. Stefan Parsons, one lap down, five laps led

29. Justin Allgaier, one lap down, one lap led

30. Sheldon Creed, two laps down, six laps led

31. JJ Yeley, two laps down

32. Jeb Burton – OUT, Accident

33. Mason Massey – OUT, Dvp

34. Brandon Brown – OUT, Accident

35. Natalie Decker, 19 laps down

36. Howie Disavino III – OUT, Driveshaft

37. Brett Moffitt – OUT, Driveshaft

38. Brennan Poole – OUT, Clutch

Next on the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is the series’ first of two visits to Talladega Superspeedway, where the third Dash 4 Cash event will occur. The event is scheduled to occur on April 23 at 4 p.m. ET on FOX.

April 9, 2022
Taylor Moyer to call 100th Xfinity Series event as crew chief at Daytona

A significant milestone achievement is in the making for Taylor Moyer, crew chief for rookie Sam Mayer and the No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro team for the upcoming NASCAR Xfinity Series season. By participating in this weekend’s season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway, Moyer will call his 100th Xfinity career event as a crew chief.

Moyer, a native of Shoreham, Vermont, who graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and worked as a race engineer for Kasey Kahne and William Byron at Hendrick Motorsports, assumed the role as crew chief for JR Motorsports’ No. 8 “all-star” Chevrolet Camaro entry prior to the 2019 Xfinity Series season. The ride was shared between Chase Elliott, Ryan Preece, Zane Smith, Ryan Truex, Jeb Burton, Brett Moffitt, Sheldon Creed, Regan Smith and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Commencing the 2019 Xfinity Series season with a 10th-place result at Daytona International Speedway in February with Elliott, Moyer led the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet team to seven top-five results, 23 top-10 results and a 10th-place result in the final Xfinity owner’s standings. The team’s best on-track result during the season was a runner-up result posted by Ryan Truex at Phoenix Raceway in March.

For the 2020 season, Moyer remained as the crew chief for JRM’s No. 8 “all-star” entry that was shared between Burton, Daniel Hemric and Earnhardt Jr. The team commenced the season with two consecutive results outside of the top 20 due to wrecks, but rallied during the following event at Auto Club Speedway as Hemric finished seventh. Three races later, Hemric posted a runner-up result at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. The team would achieve two additional runner-up results throughout the season (one by Jeb Burton at Richmond Raceway in September and another by Hemric at Kansas Speedway in October) along with a total of 11 top-five results, 19 top-10 results, 68 laps led and a ninth-place result in the final Xfinity owner’s standings.

The following season (2021) marked Moyer’s third consecutive season as an Xfinity crew chief for the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet team that was split between Josh Berry, Miguel Paludo, Sam Mayer and Earnhardt Jr. After finishing no higher than seventh place twice during the opening six scheduled events, Moyer achieved his first NASCAR victory as a crew chief after the No. 8 Chevrolet piloted by Berry won at Martinsville Speedway in April. The victory was also the first for Berry and the No. 8 JRM team as the team was placed in contention to compete for the 2021 Xfinity owner’s championship. For the rest of the season, however, the No. 8 team only achieved four additional top-five results and a total of 13 top-10 results before settling in 12th place in the final owner’s standings.

The 2022 Xfinity Series season is set to mark Moyer’s fourth full-time season as a crew chief for JRM, but the first season where he will be paired with a full-time competitor as Sam Mayer, a two-time ARCA Menards Series East champion who drove the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet in 17 events and earned six top-10 results in 2021, prepares to embark in his first full-time Xfinity campaign in the No. 1 JRM Chevrolet Camaro.

Through 99 previous Xfinity starts, Moyer has achieved one victory, 23 top-five results and 55 top-10 results while working with 13 different competitors.

Moyer is scheduled to call his 100th Xfinity Series event as a crew chief for the 2022 season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, February 19, with coverage to start at 5 p.m. ET on FS1.

February 16, 2022
NASCAR Hall of Fame honors 2021 inductees Dale Earnhart Jr., Red Farmer and Mike Stefanik

The NASCAR Hall of Fame continued its tradition of paying tribute to the sport’s past Saturday night with the induction of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Charles “Red” Farmer and the late Mike Stefanik.

The evening’s ceremony was a unique glimpse into the history of the sport and how each of these drivers contributed to the growth of NASCAR and secured their place in its history.

Renowned crew chief, Ray Evernham, a 2018 Hall of Fame inductee, opened up the ceremony, saying, “This is our house, this is our house where our legends live.” He then invited Stefanik’s wife, Julie, to the stage to accept the NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee ring.

“This is a huge honor, and I know Michael would have been very humbled,” Julie Stefanik said. She spoke of his 38 years in the sport and her appreciation of all the people who had helped and influenced him during those years, saying, “I can’t even begin to name names and won’t even try in fear of leaving someone out.”

She spoke at length about her husband’s career but ended by saying, “He was more than just a racer to us. He was a beloved husband, father, son, brother and friend and he will be missed forever.

Stefanik’s accomplishments include being at the top of the list for all-time NASCAR championships with nine, a position he shares with only one other driver, 2012 Hall of Fame inductee, Richie Evans. Julie Stefanik named Evans as someone who was a mentor to her husband and a good friend. In 2003, Stefanik was named one of the Modified Tour’s 10 Greatest Drivers and he holds the all-time series record in wins, poles, top fives and top 10s.

Tony Stewart, a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and good friend, inducted Farmer. He described him as “a racer’s racer,” saying, “he deserves to be in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.”

Farmer began by humorously saying, I’m gonna take a little time here tonight. I hope you all had something to drink and been to the bathroom ‘cause I got 75 years of racing I need to talk about.”

It was a theme that would be prevalent throughout his speech as he regaled the audience with stories. His entertaining story-telling even prompted Dale Earnhardt Jr. to say, “I think I got my first guest for this year’s Dale Jr. Download. I don’t know what you’re doing in February, Red, but I need you to come on and tell some stories, buddy.”

Farmer named Ralph Moody as someone who helped him tremendously during his career and spoke of their first meeting when he was new to racing and searching for direction.

During his speech, he noted that the NASCAR Hall of Fame was the 10th hall of fame to honor him.

“If these Hall of Fames were a Christmas tree with all the ornaments around it, this NASCAR award,” Farmer said, “would be the gold star on top of that Christmas tree.”

Farmer has been racing for 75 years and at the age of 89, continues to race. He was a member of the Alabama Gang and was named one of the 50 Greatest Drivers in NASCAR’s first 50 years in 1998. His exact win count is unknown but estimates put it at over 700.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was inducted by his wife, Amy. After congratulating the other inductees, Earnhardt reflected on his humble beginnings.

“I was a mechanic at a dealership. That was my destiny, or so I thought.”

He couldn’t have been more wrong.

As a driver, his accomplishments include 26 Cup Series wins, two Daytona 500 wins, two Xfinity Series championships and being voted the most popular driver for 15 consecutive years. He has also won three Xfinity Series championships as a team owner of JR Motorsports with 58 race wins. Now working as a television analyst, he has continued his influence and cemented his legacy off the track.

Earnhardt began by thanking everyone involved in NASCAR, “anyone who has ever invested their time in this sport to make it great.” He went on to say, “However if I were to single just one person out of that group somebody who embodies NASCAR and has also been an incredible friend to me and mentor, it’s Mike Helton.”

He also mentioned others who had played significant roles during his career, including Gary Hargett, who taught him humility when he first began racing late models. “He taught me how to treat people,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “He called me out when I was making mistakes. Gary never shouted. Gary never got angry. But, he was a guy who held me accountable.”

Tony Eury Sr. was, without doubt, a key factor in Earnhardt’s growth in the sport. When Dale Earnhardt asked Eury who should drive Dale Earnhard Inc.’s Xfinity Series car, Eury suggested that his father let Dale Jr. drive it.

He also gave credit to his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, Rick Hendrick, Steve Letarte, and his fans.

“Junior Nation has always had my back. When I stumbled you guys were right there ready to lift me back up. And man, there were times when I absolutely needed you and you never let me down. We won together and we lost together. And because so, you should know that I don’t go into this Hall of Fame alone. I go with you and I go because of you.”

But most importantly, the person who made his life complete, his wife, Amy.

“How do you explain someone who makes every day of your life better?” Earnhardt said.

The night would not have been complete without Earnhardt acknowledging the significance of joining his father as an inductee. It was a proud and humbling experience to join his father, Dale Earnhardt, who was a member of the inaugural NASCAR Hall of Fame class of 2010.

“To join Dad in the Hall of Fame is probably as good as it’s going to get.”

During the Hall of Fame ceremony, the late Bob Jenkins was awarded the Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence for his work in television and radio broadcasting. Also recognized was the late Ralph Seagraves as the recipient of the 2021 Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR. Seagraves was an executive with R.J. Reynolds and influential in bringing the Winston sponsorship to NASCAR.

*All photos by Ted Seminara

January 21, 2022
Dale Earnhardt Jr. posts top-15 result at Richmond

While Noah Gragson celebrated an emotional win at Richmond Raceway, his teammate and boss, Dale Earnhardt Jr., emerged with a smile across his face following a 14th-place run in his lone NASCAR Xfinity Series scheduled event of this season.

The two-time Daytona 500 champion and 15-time NASCAR Cup Most Popular Driver started 30th based on a performance metric formula, weighing the driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity event, the owner points position and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race.

When the green flag waved and the race started, Earnhardt Jr., who drove his own-operated No. 8 Unilever “United for America” Chevrolet Camaro from JR Motorsports, wasted no time methodically working his way towards the front.

By the fifth lap, he was up in 24th. Nearly five laps later, he cracked the top 20 on the track. He remained in the top 20 and settled in 19th place when the competition caution flew on Lap 35.

When the race proceeded, Earnhardt Jr. continued to run inside the top 20, which he settled in, 19th, as the first stage concluded on Lap 75.

After pitting for four fresh tires and adjustments to his car, Earnhardt Jr. restarted the second stage in the top 15. Nearing the Lap 100 mark, he managed to crack the top 10, running in ninth place at one point, before settling in 12th place when the stage concluded under caution on Lap 150.

Following a four-tire pit stop under caution, Earnhardt Jr. made another appearance in the top 10 when the final stage started. By Lap 169 of 250, he was scored in seventh. During a caution period under the final 70 laps, Earnhardt Jr. elected to remain on the track on old tires, which placed him in third. Despite restarting towards the front, Earnhardt Jr. was quickly overtaken by competitors on fresh tires.

With less than 30 laps remaining, Earnhardt Jr. pitted for fresh tires. Then, he was sent to the rear of the field after speeding on pit road, which effectively ended his hopes for a win. After making light contact with the outside wall to avoid an incident with 12 laps remaining, Earnhardt Jr. was able to continue and make his way up in 14th place through the final seven laps under green and when the checkered flag waved.

While he did not contend for the win against his teammates and fellow competitors, Earnhardt Jr.’s top-15 result marked his first NASCAR event since competing at Homestead-Miami Speedway in June 2020 and his ninth Xfinity Richmond start.

“[The young competitors] race hard there in the middle of the pack, especially around me,” Earnhardt Jr. said on NBCSN. “I was up for it. It was fun. We got to beating on some of them guys. They beat back on us. We got fenced off of Turn 4 and then, off of Turn 2 there late, but we didn’t have the car that I was looking for. Maybe, I just couldn’t figure out how to get it around the track. We tried hard and tried to make adjustments, couldn’t really figure out how to make the left front work. The car’s real tight, but it was fun. I love racing in the Xfinity Series. All these guys got so much heart and they just race so hard. You can tell they’re trying to prove themselves. It’s so much fun being out there with them and learning about those guys. You get to see how they race.”

While his racing schedule for this season is complete, Earnhardt Jr. did not rule out competing in another Xfinity Series event for the 2022 season.

“[I] Had fun,” Earnhardt Jr. added. “I’d like to do another [race]. Can’t wait to get back in [the car].”

Rookie Sam Mayer is scheduled to pilot the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro for the remainder of this year’s Xfinity Series schedule, beginning next weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday, September 17, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 11, 2021
Gragson goes back-to-back with a win at Richmond

One week after snapping a 49-race winless drought at Darlington Raceway, Noah Gragson benefitted through a handful of late-race restarts and four fresh tires to lead the final 14 laps and win the Go Bowling 250 at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, September 11.

The victory made Gragson the fourth multi-winner of this year’s Xfinity Series season as he claimed his fourth career win in the Xfinity circuit. This also marked the first time in Gragson’s racing career where he claimed back-to-back victories across NASCAR’s top three national touring series.

The starting lineup was based on a performance metric formula, weighing the driver’s and owner’s results from a previous Xfinity event, the owner points position and the fastest lap recorded from a previous Xfinity race. With that, Austin Cindric started on pole position and was joined on the front row with Harrison Burton. Prior to the event, Ty Dillon and Bayley Currey started at the rear of the field due to driver change of their respective machines. Akinori Ogata also dropped to the rear for missing driver introductions.

When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Cindric jumped ahead with an early advantage over Harrison Burton to lead the first lap. Behind, Justin Haley boosted his way to third place followed by teammate Jeb Burton and Noah Gragson.

Through the first five laps of the event, Cindric was leading by a narrow margin over Harrison Burton. Jeb Burton was up in third followed by Gragson and Justin Allgaier while Haley fell back to sixth. AJ Allmendinger, Jeremy Clements, Ryan Sieg and Daniel Hemric were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was making his lone Xfinity scheduled start of the season, was up in 24th after starting.

By Lap 10, Cindric continued to lead by nearly half a second over Harrison Burton. By then, NASCAR crew members and fans paused for a moment of silence through Laps 9 to 11 and saluted with American fans in remembrance of the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Through Lap 20 and when the competition caution flew on Lap 35, Cindric was still out in front of the field. Under the competition caution, the leaders remained on the track. During this time, Jeb Burton’s car was pushed to pit road due to a battery issue.

When the race restarted on Lap 43, Allmendinger and Harrison Burton challenged Cindric for the top spot, but Cindric maintained his ground and continued to lead. Two laps later, however, Allmendinger made his move beneath Cindric to take the lead. Shortly after, Allgaier and Harrison Burton moved up to second and third while Cindric slipped to fourth in front of Ty Gibbs.

By Lap 70, Tommy Joe Martins, who pitted for fresh tires under the competition caution, emerged with the lead over Allmendinger.

When the final lap of the first stage occurred, Martins was still leading by a narrow margin over Allmendinger. Then in Turn 3, Martins got briefly stalled behind the lapped car of David Starr. While Martins went high, Allmendinger went low and was able to edge Martins at the start/finish line to win the first stage on Lap 75 and claim his ninth stage victory of the season. Cindric rallied for third followed by Gibbs, JJ Yeley, Harrison Burton, Daniel Hemric, Gragson, Spencer Boyd and Patrick Emerling settled in the top 10.

Under the stage break, the leaders pitted for service. During the pit stops, Allmendinger got boxed into his pit stall while Allgaier encountered steering issues.

The second stage started on Lap 84 as Cindric and Hemric filled out the front row. At the start, Hemric battled dead even with Cindric for a full lap before the former prevailed the following lap. Then the following lap, the caution flew when Tommy Joe Martins, who had a strong run in the first stage, spun following contact from Spencer Boyd.

Five laps later, the race restarted and Hemric retained the top spot. By Lap 98, Ty Gibbs made his way to the lead.

With four laps remaining in the second stage, the caution flew when CJ McLaughlin spun and wrecked off the front nose of Jade Buford in Turn 3. The wreck was enough for the second stage scheduled on Lap 150 to conclude under caution as Gibbs claimed his third stage victory of the season. Allmendinger ended up in second followed by Harrison Burton, Gragson, Hemric, Cindric, Sam Mayer, Riley Herbst, Ryan Sieg and John Hunter Nemechek.

Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Hemric emerged with the lead followed by Gragson, Gibbs, Harrison Burton and Allmendinger.

With 92 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Gragson managed to peak ahead of Hemric and Gibbs on the inside lane to take the lead for the first time.

Five laps later, Gragson was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Hemric, who was pursued by his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Gibbs and Harrison Burton. Behind, Sam Mayer was in fifth followed by Allmendinger, Cindric, Allgaier, Earnhardt Jr. and John Hunter Nemechek.

Another three laps later, Gibbs made a move to the outside of Gragson to reassume the lead. While Harrison Burton challenged Gragson for the runner-up spot, Hemric, meanwhile, fell back to 10th.

Nearing the final 80 laps of the event, the caution flew for a spin involving Bayley Currey. Under caution, Ryan Sieg pitted while the rest led by Gibbs remained on the track.

With 74 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Harrison Burton overtook teammate Gibbs to lead for the first time. While Mayer was up in third, Allgaier charged his way up to fourth after overtaking teammate Gragson.

Six laps later, the caution returned due to Landon Cassill coming to a stop at the pit road entrance. Under caution, some led by Harrison Burton and Gibbs pitted while the rest led by Mayer, Haley and Earnhardt Jr. remained on the track.

Under the final 63 laps, the race restarted under green. At the start, Mayer took off with the lead while the field bumped and fanned out to multiple lanes for a full lap between competitors on old or fresh tires. Meanwhile, Harrison Burton bolted his way up to third place on fresh tires after overtaking a multitude of competitors, including Earnhardt Jr.

With 58 laps remaining, Harrison Burton reassumed the lead. A few laps later, Ty Gibbs took over the runner-up spot while Allmendinger challenged Mayer for third. Joining the battle were John Hunter Nemechek, Haley and Cindric.

Down to the final 50 laps of the event, Harrison Burton was leading by a second over teammate Gibbs, with Allmendinger, Nemechek and Cindric in the top five. Allgaier was in sixth followed by teammate Gragson, Alex Labbe, Hemric and Sieg. Meanwhile, Haley was in 12th ahead of Michael Annett, Mayer and Riley Herbst while Myatt Snider was in 16th, Brandon Jones was in 18th and Earnhardt Jr. was in 21st behind Jeb Burton.

Ten laps later, Harrison Burton continued to lead by more than a second over teammate Gibbs. Meanwhile, Allmendinger continued to run in third followed by Nemechek, Cindric, Allgaier and Gragson. Behind the front-runners, Mayer and Earnhardt Jr. were in 20th and 21st.

With 27 laps remaining, the caution flew due to Josh Williams spinning and backing his car into the Turn 2 outside wall following contact with Akinori Ogata. Under caution, the leaders led by Harrison Burton pitted while Allmendinger, Cindric and Brandon Jones remained on the track. During the pit stops, Earnhardt Jr. was penalized for speeding while Jeb Burton was also penalized for an uncontrolled tire.

Down to the final 21 laps of the event, the rare restarted under green. At the start, Allmendinger peaked ahead with the lead and Cindric spun the tires on the outside lane while the field fanned out to multiple lanes entering the first turn and through the backstretch. Then, the caution returned for Martins wrecking in Turn 1.

With 14 laps remaining, the race restarted under green. At the start, Allmendinger jumped ahead of Brandon Jones, who spun the tires, as the field fanned out to multiple lanes again through the first turn and the backstretch.

A lap later, the caution flew due to Clements spinning on the frontstretch after getting turned by Myatt Snider. During the incident, Earnhardt Jr. made contact with the frontstretch outside wall while battling Kyle Weatherman. By then, Gragson emerged with the lead followed by Nemechek while Allmendinger slipped back to third. Under caution, Cindric pitted for tires.

Down to the final seven laps of the event, the race restarted. At the start, Gragson retained the lead following a strong start followed by Nemechek and Allgaier while Allmendinger fell back to fourth ahead of Gibbs.

With five laps remaining and the field fanning out across the track, Gragson continued to lead by half a second over Nemechek as Allgaier challenged Nemechek for more.

When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Gragson was ahead by half a second. Behind, Haley made his way to second followed by Nemechek, Allgaier and others. While Haley had a late charge established, Gragson was able to retain the lead and come back around to claim his second consecutive checkered flag of this season and his first at Richmond.

After celebrating with his burnout, Gragson, who saluted the fans with an American flag, took a moment to pay tribute to the victims and those affected by the September 11 attacks 20 years ago today.

“I knew [Haley] had tires, but the thing that really kept us alive were those two cautions at the end,” Gragson said on NBCSN. “Today’s not about this team or this win. It’s about everybody who lost their life 20 years ago. You got a lot of heavy hearts. At least in America, we can come together on this day. [I] Appreciate all you race fans for coming out. Man, it’s an emotional day. It’s a special day, but it’s not about us today.”

“It’s really special to be able to come here to Richmond, to beat Dale [Earnhardt] Jr., which is pretty cool,” Gragson added. “I never thought I’d say that. We’re starting to get momentum at the right time. Appreciate everything, for sure. Very emotional.”

Haley, winner at Daytona International Speedway in late August, finished in second place at Richmond for a second consecutive season while Nemechek, making his second Xfinity start of the season in the No. 26 Sam Hunt Racing Toyota Supra, finished third.

“I was fully prepared to do anything it took to win,” Haley said. “We had better tires. We were so fast. We showed a championship-caliber team there coming back through the field, taking a bad day and making it okay. That one’s definitely tough. It hurts, it stinks.”

Allgaier placed fourth followed by Riley Herbst. Hemric, Gibbs, Brandon Brown, Harrison Burton and Jeb Burton finished in the top 10.

Mayer finished 12th while Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 14th in his lone NASCAR start of the season.

Cindric and Allmendinger shuffled back to 16th and 18th while Brandon Jones, Annett, Josh Berry, Snider and Clements finished 20th, 22nd, 24th, 25th and 26th.

There were 15 lead changes for eight different leaders. The race featured nine cautions for 58 laps.

AJ Allmendinger continues to lead the regular-season standings by five points over Austin Cindric. With their top-20 runs, Jeremy Clements, Brandon Jones and Riley Herbst occupy the final three open spots to the 2021 Xfinity Series Playoffs with one regular-season event remaining. Herbst, the 12th-place competitor in the standings, is ahead by 66 points over Michael Annett, 93 over Ryan Sieg, 109 over Brandon Brown and 198 over Josh Williams.

Results.

1. Noah Gragson, 22 laps led

2. Justin Haley

3. John Hunter Nemechek

4. Justin Allgaier

5. Riley Herbst

6. Daniel Hemric, 17 laps led

7. Ty Gibbs, 67 laps led, Stage 2 winner

8. Brandon Brown

9. Harrison Burton, 43 laps led

10. Jeb Burton

11. Ty Dillon

12. Sam Mayer, seven laps led

13. Ryan Sieg

14. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

15. Kyle Weatherman

16. Austin Cindric, 50 laps led

17. Mason Massey

18. AJ Allmendinger, 39 laps led, Stage 1 winner

19. Alex Labbe

20. Brandon Jones

21. Matt Mills

22. Michael Annett

23. Josh Williams

24. Josh Berry

25. Myatt Snider

26. Jeremy Clements

27. Bayley Currey

28. David Starr, one lap down

29. JJ Yeley, two laps down

30. Jeffrey Earnhardt, two laps down

31. Joe Graf Jr., two laps down

32. Patrick Emerling, two laps down

33. Spencer Boyd, two laps down

34. Akinori Ogata, three laps down

35. Ryan Vargas, four laps down

36. Jade Buford, four laps down

37. Tommy Joe Martins – OUT, Accident, five laps led

38. Stephen Leicht, 30 laps down

39. Landon Cassill – OUT, Ignition

40. CJ McLaughlin – OUT, Accident

Next on the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule is Bristol Motor Speedway, the final regular-season event of the season and where this year’s Xfinity 12-car Playoff field will be determined. The event is scheduled to occur on Friday, September 17, at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

September 11, 2021
Bowman to make 200th Cup start at Kansas

Competing in his sixth full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series, Alex Bowman is set to achieve a milestone start. By taking the green flag in this weekend’s event at Kansas Speedway, the driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE will reach 200 starts in NASCAR’s premier series.

A native from Tucson, Arizona, Bowman made his inaugural presence in the Cup Series a month prior to the 2014 season. By then, he was coming off a full-time Xfinity Series season with RAB Racing and was testing for BK Racing during Dayton’s Preseason Thunder leading up to the Daytona 500. Bowman’s testing session was enough for him to earn a full-time ride with BKR for the 2014 Cup season and in the No. 23 Toyota Camry.

Qualifying for the 2014 Daytona 500, Bowman finished 23rd in his first Cup career race. Throughout his first full-time season in the Cup circuit, he achieved a season-best 13th-place result at Daytona in July, an average result of 32.6 and a 35th-place result in the final standings. He also settled in sixth place in the Cup Rookie-of-the-Year standings.

In 2015, Bowman departed BKR and joined Tommy Baldwin Racing as driver of the No. 7 Chevrolet SS. He started the season on a low note by failing to qualify for the Daytona 500 after wrecking in his Daytona Duel event. From the second race of the season at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he raced, through the season-finale event at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November, Bowman achieved a season-best 16th-place result at Talladega Superspeedway in April, a total of three top-20 results, an average result of 31.6 and a 33rd-place result in the final standings.

A month prior to the 2016 season, Bowman was replaced by Regan Smith at Tommy Baldwin Racing, thus leaving Bowman without a full-time ride for the first half of the Cup season. Everything changed in July, though, when Bowman was named driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet SS for the Cup event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July, replacing third-generation star Dale Earnhardt Jr. after Earnhardt Jr. was ruled out from competing after being diagnosed with concussion-like symptoms. During the main event at New Hampshire, Bowman was competitive and was in position for a strong result until a cut tire sent him into the wall late in the event and relegated him to a 26th-place result.

With Earnhardt Jr. sidelined, Bowman ended up sharing the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet SS with four-time NASCAR Cup champion Jeff Gordon for the remaining 18 Cup events of the 2016 season. Competing in 10 events, Bowman recorded his first three top-10 career results in the Cup circuit, including a season-best sixth place at Phoenix Raceway in November, where he notched his first Cup career pole and led a race-high 194 of 324 laps. Bowman’s pole at Phoenix guaranteed him a spot for the 2017 Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona. Despite entering the 2017 season without a full-time ride, he drove Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 88 Chevrolet SS in the Clash, where he drove the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet SS to a third-place result following a side-by-side battle with Kyle Busch on the final lap.

Three months after Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced his retirement from full-time Cup competition after 2017 in April, Bowman was named a full-time driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for the 2018 Cup season, a move that was endorsed by Earnhardt Jr.

In his first run as a full-time HMS competitor, Bowman claimed the pole position for the 2018 Daytona 500. During the main event, he led 13 laps and was a top contender until he was collected in a late multi-car accident and finished 17th. He went on to earn a season-best third-place result at Pocono Raceway in July and a total of nine top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch. Despite recording zero victories throughout the regular season, Bowman was able to make the 2018 Cup Playoffs based on consistency.

In the Playoff’s Round of 16, Bowman earned results of 19th, 12th and fourth, which were enough for him to advance to the Round of 12. During the Round of 12, however, he recorded results of 28th, 33rd and ninth, which eliminated from title contention. Bowman went on to conclude the season in 16th place in the final standings. By then, he surpassed 100 Cup career starts.

Bowman commenced the 2019 Cup season by starting on the front row for the season-opening Daytona 500 and finishing 11th in the main event. Nine races later, he earned a career-best second-place result at Talladega Superspeedway in April. He went on to record two additional runner-up results the following two races at Dover International Speedway and at Kansas Speedway in May.

Five races later, Bowman prevailed in a late battle with Kyle Larson to claim his first Cup career win at Chicagoland Speedway in June. In becoming the 18th competitor to win while driving for Hendrick Motorsports, Bowman recorded the first victory for HMS’ No. 88 Chevrolet team since Phoenix in November 2015.

Returning to the Playoffs, Bowman advanced to the Round of 12 following results of sixth, 23rd and second during the Round of 16. Despite recording results of third, 37th and 11th in the Round of 12, his title hopes came to an end. Nonetheless, Bowman went on to conclude the season in 12th place in the final standings and with a career-high seven top-five results.

Remaining at HMS for a third consecutive season, Bowman opened the season with a 24th-place result in the Daytona 500 despite starting on the front row. Two races later, however, he notched his second Cup career victory at Auto Club Speedway after leading a race-high 110 of 200 laps.

Following his victory at Fontana, Bowman went on to earn a total of eight top-10 results before entering the Playoffs as a title contender. He transferred to the Round of 12 for the third consecutive season and following results of sixth, ninth and 16th in the Round of 16. For the 2020 season, though, he was also able to advance to the Round of 8 following results of fifth, 14th and eighth during the Round of 12. Bowman remained competitive during the Round of 8 while logging in results of third, fifth and sixth. They were not enough, however, for him to advance to the Championship Round at Phoenix. Ultimately, Bowman concluded the season in a career-best sixth place in the final standing and with a career-best 15 top-10 results.

This season, Bowman pilots the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, a ride driven by seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, who retired from full-time NASCAR competition following the 2020 season. His first run in the No. 48 car started off on a high note as Bowman claimed his second Daytona 500 pole of his career. In doing so, he became the first competitor to start on the front row for the 500 for four consecutive seasons. His bid for a first Daytona 500 victory, though, came to an end after being involved in an early multi-car wreck.

Through the first eight Cup events of the 2021 season, Bowman’s best result was a third-place run at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March. The following event at Richmond Raceway in April, he overtook Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano following a late restart to claim his third Cup triumph and return the No. 48 HMS car to Victory Lane since June 2017 at Dover International Speedway.

In 199 previous Cup starts, Bowman has achieved three career victories, three poles, 18 top-five results, 45 top-10 results, over 900 laps led and an average result of 21.7. He is currently ranked in 14th place in the 2021 Cup Series regular-season standings.

Bowman is slated to make his 200th Cup career start at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, May 2, at 3 p.m. ET on FS1.

April 28, 2021
Travis Mack named crew chief for Trackhouse Racing Team in 2021

Trackhouse Racing Team announced that Travis Mack will be serving as crew chief for the team’s No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team and driver Daniel Suarez for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season.

The announcement comes approximately a week after the 2020 NASCAR season concluded, where Mack is coming off his second full-time season as an Xfinity Series crew chief for Michael Annett and the No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro team.

Mack, a native from Louisville, Kentucky, joins Trackhouse Racing with an extensive resume of working on race cars and for racing teams. Starting his career working as a car chief for 10-time ARCA Racing Series champion Frank Kimmel in the early 2000s, Mack joined Hendrick Motorsports in 2005 and worked as a shock specialist. From there, his career blossomed as he was also a member of Hendrick Motorsports’ Nos. 24 and 88 teams before becoming a car chief for JR Motorsports and HMS in 2012-2017, working with names like Regan Smith, Chase Elliott and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Mack made his first two appearances as a crew chief late in the 2017 Cup Series season for Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 88 Chevrolet SS team before being announced as a full-time crew chief for Kasey Kahne and the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 team for the 2018 Cup season. Midway through the 2018 season, Mack returned to JR Motorsports to serve as crew chief for Michael Annett and the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro team.

In February 2019, Mack achieved his first win as a crew chief when Annett also achieved his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory at Daytona International Speedway in February after leading a race-high/final 45 laps of the race. They went on to achieve a total of six top-five results and 19 top-10 results along with a pole as they made the Playoffs, where they concluded the season in ninth place in the final standings.

This past season, Annett and Mack achieved four top-five results and 22 top-10 results as they made the Playoffs before concluding the season in ninth place in the final standings.

The move to Trackhouse Racing will mark Mack’s return to the Cup Series as a crew chief since June 2018 when he was with Kasey Kahne and Leavine Family Racing.

Trackhouse Racing Team is a newly formed NASCAR Cup Series team created by Justin Marks, an entrepreneur and former competitor, that announced its entrance into the sport in October. During the announcement, the team revealed that Daniel Suarez, the 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion and Cup Series veteran from Monterrey, Mexico, will be serving as their driver for the 2021 season. The team will be technically aligned with Richard Childress Racing and operate in Welcome, North Carolina. The team is also guaranteed an entry for every Cup race next season after being leased a charter from Spire Motorsports.

Catch Mack’s return and Trackhouse Racing Team’s debut at Daytona International Speedway for the 63rd running of the Daytona 500 on February 14, 2021.

November 13, 2020
Berry to compete with JR Motorsports on a part-time Xfinity basis in 2021

Fresh off this year’s NASCAR Weekly Series championship, Josh Berry will be competing as a part-time competitor in JR Motorsports’ No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro for the first half of the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, spanning approximately 12 races.

The news was revealed by team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Thursday and it also comes as Berry achieved the 2020 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly National title in a season where he earned 24 victories, 33 top-five results and 36 top-10 results in 37 starts.

“I’m honestly speechless,” Berry said. “That’s the last thing I would have expected. Gosh, that’s amazing. I can’t wait to prepare for that and get going. [It’s] truly unbelievable. I just can’t thank everybody enough for believing in me and giving me these opportunities. For a short track guy, it’s just amazing to see these opportunities come about.”

The 29-year-old competitor from Hendersonville, Tennessee, is no stranger in achieving past success in racing nor with JR Motorsports. Having raced in JRM’s late model program for 10 years, Berry is also the 2017 CARS Tour Late Model Stock champion and the 2019 ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner. He has also achieved the 2016 CARS owners’ title and track championships at North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway and at Virginia’s Motor Mile Speedway.

Berry has also made limited starts across NASCAR’s top three national touring series. In August 2014, Berry made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut with JR Motorsports at Iowa Speedway. Driving the No. 5 Tackle Grab Powered by Earnhardt Outdoors Chevrolet Camaro, Berry started 10th and finished 12th in his series debut.

From 2014 to 2017, Berry has made seven career starts in the Xfinity Series, all except one occurring with JR Motorsports, and has earned two top-10 results. His lone start outside of JRM was at Darlington Raceway in September 2016 with Obaika Racing. His best result in the series was a seventh-place result at Richmond Raceway in September 2015 while driving JRM’s No. 88 Speedco Truck Lube & Tires Chevrolet Camaro. He has also made one career start in the NASCAR Truck Series, which occurred at Chicagoland Speedway in September 2016. Driving the No. 71 American Club/RaceTrac Chevrolet Silverado for Contreras Motorsports, Berry started 22nd and finished 13th.

Berry joins Sam Mayer, the 2020 ARCA Menards Series East champion, as two competitors who are scheduled to share the seat of the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet Camaro for next year’s Xfinity Series season, with Mayer graduating to a full-time role with the team in 2022.

Further details regarding Berry’s schedule and JRM’s No. 8 team will be announced at a later date.

October 22, 2020
Bowman to make 100th start with Hendrick Motorsports at Texas

When the green flag waves in the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 19, Alex Bowman will reach a significant milestone in his racing career. By starting this Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at the Lone Star state, Bowman will make his 100th Cup start in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro.

When the 2015 season concluded, Bowman had competed in his first two full-time seasons in the Cup Series between BK Racing and Tommy Baldwin Racing. His best finishes between the two seasons was 13th at Daytona in July 2014 and 16th at Talladega in May 2015. Prior to the 2016 season, however, Bowman was left without a full-time ride after Tommy Baldwin Racing decided to replace Bowman with Regan Smith for the upcoming Cup season. All the Arizona native had in his racing schedule for 2016 was a nine-race stint in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports.

Through July and following his first five races with JRM, Bowman finished in the top 10 in all of his starts, which included a third-place result at Dover in May. Then, an opportunity made way for him when Dale Earnhardt Jr., two-time Daytona 500 champion and one of NASCAR’s most popular drivers, experienced concussion-like symptoms and did not participate in the upcoming Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July 2016. During the race, Bowman had a strong run in his first Cup race in Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 Nationwide/Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet SS led by crew chief Greg Ives. Despite running in the top 10 the majority of the run, he cut a tire on Lap 272 of 301 and finished 26th, but he still left New Hampshire satisfied with his run while receiving the opportunity to compete alongside NASCAR’s elite. Bowman and four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon would, ultimately, fill in the No. 88 Chevrolet for the remainder of the 2016 season when the concussion symptoms sidelined Earnhardt Jr. Competing in nine of the remaining 13 Cup races, Bowman recorded three top-10 results, including a career-best sixth place at Phoenix in November on a weekend where he recorded his first Cup career pole. He also competed in four more Xfinity races with JR Motorsports and earned two more top-10 results.

Based on winning the pole position at Phoenix, Bowman piloted the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet in the Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona in February 2017, where he finished third after battling Kyle Busch on the final lap. While Earnhardt Jr. returned to racing full time for the 2017 season, Bowman, again, was left without a full-time ride within NASCAR’s three major division series, making only one start in the NASCAR Truck Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway with GMS Racing in February, where he finished sixth. In April, Earnhardt Jr. announced his retirement from racing full time in the Cup Series and was a leading advocate for Bowman to replace him. On July 20, Bowman was officially named the driver of the No. 88 Nationwide/AXALTA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports for the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season. For the remainder of the 2017 season, Bowman competed in two Xfinity Series races in the No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro for Chip Ganassi Racing. In October at Charlotte Motor Speedway, he notched his first Xfinity career victory after leading the final 32 laps. He finished eighth in his other start at Phoenix in November.

In his first run in the No. 88 Chevrolet in 2018, Bowman won the pole position for the 60th running of the Daytona 500 with a pole-winning speed at 195.644 mph in 46.002 seconds. Leading 13 laps, he finished 17th in the 500 after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. Finishing no higher than 13th in the first five races of the 2018 season, Bowman recorded his first top-10 result, seventh, the following race at Martinsville Speedway. Two races later, he recorded his first career top-five result, fifth, at Bristol Motor Speedway. For the remaining 18 races of the regular season, Bowman recorded seven more top-10 results, including a career-best third place at Pocono Raceway in July, to make his Playoffs. With finishes of 19th, 12th and fourth in the three races of the Round of 16 in the Playoffs, he advanced to the Round of 12. The following round, he recorded finishes of 28th, 33rd and ninth, and was eliminated from title contention. Ultimately, he concluded the season in 16th in the final standings. During his first full-time season racing for Hendrick Motorsports, Bowman recorded three top-five results, 11 top-10 results and an average result of 17.0. In May, he competed in the Monster Energy Open at Charlotte Motor Speedway and won the first segment to advance to his first All-Star Race, where he finished last of the 21-car field following an accident in the third stage.

Bowman started the 2019 Cup season by qualifying on the front row for the Daytona 500, starting alongside teammate and pole-sitter William Byron, and finishing fifth in the rain-shortened Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona. For the first nine races of the season, he finished no higher than 11th. By then, he surpassed 50 starts with HMS. In April at Talladega Superspeedway, Bowman notched a career-best second place behind teammate Chase Elliott. He went on to finish in the runner-up spot the following two races at Dover and at Kansas. The following week, he finished third in the Monster Energy Open, but he advanced to the All-Star Race after winning the Fan Vote, where he finished eighth. For the next four races, he finished no higher than seventh. In June at Chicagoland Speedway, Bowman prevailed in a late battle with Kyle Larson to score his first NASCAR Cup Series career win. With the victory coming in his 134th series career start, Bowman became the 18th competitor to win driving for Hendrick Motorsports and the 192nd competitor to win a Cup race. He also recorded the first victory for the No. 88 HMS Chevrolet team led by crew chief Greg Ives since November 2015 at Phoenix, an accomplishment last made by Earnhardt Jr. The win at Chicagoland guaranteed the Arizona native a spot for the 2019 Cup Playoffs. In the three races featured in the Round of 16 in the Playoffs, Bowman recorded finishes of sixth, 23rd and second to advance to the Round of 12. For the second round, however, he recorded finishes of third, 37th and 11th, and was eliminated from championship contention. He went on to finish 12th in the final standings while recording seven top-five results, 12 top-10 results and an average result of 14.4.

This season, Bowman recorded his second Cup career victory at Auto Club Speedway in March after leading a race-high 110 of the event’s 200-scheduled laps. He has also recorded two top-five results, five top-10 results and an average result of 16.9 through the first 17 Cup races of the 2020 season. He is coming off an eighth-place result in the All-Star Race at Bristol Motor Speedway, which occurred on July 15, and is ninth in the regular-season standings, trailing points leader Kevin Harvick by 177 points. He is, nonetheless, guaranteed a spot in the 2020 Playoffs by virtue of his victory at Auto Club. He is also scheduled to remain as driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for Hendrick Motorsports after signing a one-year contract extension with the 12-time championship-winning team in May.

Catch Bowman’s milestone start with Hendrick Motorsports in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas on July 19, which will air at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

July 17, 2020
Earnhardt Jr. impresses in lone NASCAR start of 2020

In his lone NASCAR Xfinity Series start of this season, Dale Earnhardt Jr. put on a thrilling show at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the competition, his pit crew, the studio crew at or absent from the track and the fans watching from home. After spending the majority of the day battling for the lead against NASCAR’s future generation of stars, Earnhardt Jr. would take the checkered flag in fifth following a two-lap shootout to the finish.

Starting 12th based on a random draw and in his No. 8 Hellmann’s Chevrolet Camaro from JR Motorsports, Earnhardt Jr. carved his way into the top 10, settling in seventh by Lap 20 when the competition caution flew. When the race returned to green on Lap 25, Earnhardt Jr. continued racing inside the top 10. With two laps remaining in the first stage, the caution returned due to an engine failure in Kody Vanderwal car, which forced the first stage to conclude under caution. By then, Earnhardt Jr. finished in seventh.

The second stage was where Earnhardt Jr. started to flex his muscles as he moved into the top five and started to set his sights toward the lead and in the mix of a battle with teammate Noah Gragson, Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric. By Lap 57, Earnhardt Jr. was in second and continued battling with Gragson, Chastain and Cindric for the top spot. When the second stage concluded, Gragson would win the stage as Earnhardt Jr. finished fourth behind Cindric and Chastain.

Following a stellar pit stop under the stage break, Earnhardt Jr. exited pit road with the lead where he led four laps under caution. On the following restart, with 80 laps remaining, Earnhardt Jr. would be overtaken for the lead as he fell back to fourth. For the majority of the final stage and in a 75-lap green-flag run, he would settle within the top five and reignite his battle for the lead with Chastain, Cindric and Gragson.

With 31 laps remaining, following a late cycle of green-flag pit stops, Earnhardt Jr. was in second, pursuing Gragson by double digits. When a late caution returned with seven laps remaining for a single-car spin in Turn 1, Earnhardt Jr. pitted with the field and exited third.

On a two-lap shootout to the finish, Earnhardt Jr. restarted in third behind Gragson and gave his teammate a shot for him to retain the lead, but both JR Motorsports’ competitors would be overtaken for position at the start of the final lap. When the checkered flag flew, Harrison Burton stormed to an upset win while Earnhardt Jr. settled in fifth, two spots behind Gragson.

The top-five result was Earnhardt Jr.’s 70th of his Xfinity Series career, which came in his 142nd series start. It was also his 354th top-10 result between the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series, a result that left one of NASCAR’s Most Popular Drivers and former Daytona 500 champion satisfied with his run.

“Man, I was so rusty,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “You see I was having trouble getting around [Chastain] there early in the race. That’s just ’cause I don’t have enough time to be able to trust where the car’s gonna end up, setting it in the corners. It was a lot of fun. I was rusty all the way through. We had it sailing there a few times, got some good speed out of the car, we were gaining on [Gragson] and I thought, ‘I’ll just keep driving it. No reason to try to save anything.’ He was so good on them long runs, we weren’t gonna catch him anyways. Hate we got that late yellow [flag] because our cars didn’t fire off very good. You saw it at the end of the race. We couldn’t go. It takes our cars a couple of corners.”

Even with his solid run, Earnhardt Jr. will hang up his helmet and fire suit for this season as Daniel Hemric will return to the driver’s seat of the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro the following day, June 14, where he will be one of four competitors contending for the second Dash 4 Cash $100,000 bonus.

“I’m gonna let [Daniel Hemric] have at it [tomorrow],” Earnhardt Jr. added. “That’s a lot of fun. This is a top, elite form of motorsports, in my mind, next to Cup. It’s not easy to get out there and compete with them boys. They’re so good and race so hard. My time’s running out.”

Earnhardt Jr.’s other two teammates, Michael Annett and Justin Allgaier, finished sixth and 32nd.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series will return for its second race of a doubleheader weekend at Homestead the following day, June 14. The race will air at noon ET on FS1.

June 13, 2020