Tag: Erik Jones

Hot 20 – Martinsville Could Showcase a Wildcard Cup Contender and a Dying Minor League

Will it bother anyone if, conceivably, one not so deserving wins the Cup title this year? I mean, if it is Jeff Gordon, Joey Logano, or Brad Keselowski, I doubt few would argue the outcome. One could even argue that the likes of Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, or Ryan Newman would be a worthy champion.

However, what about Denny Hamlin? Even if he had taken part in the two events he missed in order to mend, Hamlin would not even be in our Top Ten. Okay, maybe if he had won them both, but what were the chances? Still, would he be deemed as a worthy holder of the title?

In a word, yes. Few, if any, are pointing out the fact that the World Series participants, the Giants and the Royals, are just a pair of wildcard teams. They were not the best in their division, and in fact each was just the fourth best in their respective leagues. Yet, as time goes on, fewer will remember that the Orioles, Tigers, Angels, Dodgers, Nationals and the Cardinals all had better runs in 2014. They did, but when it counted, they did not. Hamlin is among those who has, thus far, been there when it counted.

When you watch a truck race, you can count on 36 entries. Usually. Well, sometimes. Not next year, when they scale the field down to 32. My guess is that it has been an embarrassment for NASCAR to realize a full slate just five out of 18 events. Three times they could not even get 30. Of the 37 entered to compete at Martinsville, only 13 have run the entire series. Only 16 have run 15 or more. Two others in that number, Ron Hornaday and T.J. Bell, are not even entered for this weekend.

I wonder what the problem is. Eight races have been won by Cup regulars, six of them by Kyle Busch. He, along with Keselowski and Austin Dillon are not entered at Martinsville. Two time winner Erik Jones is not, along with Cole Custer. What has gone wrong?

We are told the economy is still suffering, that sponsorship is hard to come by. So, is the involvement of the Cup guys keeping at least some level of interest alive, or is it helping to kill it? Maybe an answer can be found in the Nationwide series, where only 17 drivers have run all 30 of those races to date. They have won just eight between them. Nineteen have been won by Cup regulars, led by the half dozen claimed by (guess who?) Kyle Busch. At least they will retain the 40 car field for next season, but for how much longer?

Me thinks NASCAR needs to rethink its model for the supposed minor leagues, where 27 of the 48 events have been claimed by “major leaguers” this season. If the trend of attrition in the number of teams and full-time drivers at its lower levels does not turn around soon, Cup might be all NASCAR has to offer.

*Winning bonus increased from 3 to 25 points.
BOLD = Current Chase contenders

1 – Jeff Gordon – 4 Wins – 1203 Points*
2 – Joey Logano – 5 – 1187
3 – Brad Keselowski – 5 – 1175
4 – Dale Earnhardt Jr – 3 – 1089
5 – Kevin Harvick – 3 – 1088
6 – Jimmie Johnson – 3 – 1033
7 – Carl Edwards – 2 – 1005
8 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 993
9 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 990
10 – Kyle Larson – 0 – 967
11 – Kasey Kahne – 1 – 923
12 – Kyle Busch – 1 – 903
13 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 900
14 – Clint Bowyer – 0 – 885
15 – Austin Dillon – 0 – 878
16 – Jamie McMurray – 0 – 877
17 – Denny Hamlin – 1 – 859
18 – Brian Vickers – 0 – 830
19 – Paul Menard – 0 – 826
20 – Kurt Busch – 1 – 816

October 23, 2014

Erik Jones Beats the Odds With Truck Series Win at Las Vegas

Erik Jones took the lead from teammate Darrell Wallace Jr. with 14 laps to go in his No. 51 ToyotaCare Tundra scoring his second victory of the season in the Rhino Linings 350 at Las Vegas.

It is the 18-year-old Jones’ third career win in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Kyle Busch Motorsport’s first win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The victory is also KBM’s 10th win in 17 races this season.

“That was a blast,” Jones said after the race. “Getting a win on a mile-and-half (track), that’s awesome. I couldn’t ask for any more than this right here. I wanted to win here so bad.”

Darrell Wallace Jr. led the most laps with 84 in his No. 54 Toyota but was unable to catch his teammate in the closing laps, finishing second. It was his fifth second place finish of the 2014 season.

“Just got beat, flat out,” said a disappointed Wallace Jr. “Congrats to the 51 (Jones), hate that it’s not the 54. We need a win. (It’s) frustrating, I hate finishing second so bad. Thanks to my guys though. I thought it was ours. Another KBM dominance for sure. We’ll go on to Talladega and try to finish one spot better.”

Current points leader Matt Crafton, finished in third place and extended his points lead to 19 over Johnny Sauter, who finished 14th.

Timothy Peters, last year’s race winner at this track, led 26 laps but had to settle for a fourth place finish in Saturday night’s race. Brian Ickler finished in the fifth position.

Ryan Blaney, who started on the pole, is third in the points standings (-27) followed by Darrell Wallace Jr. in fourth (-33) and Joey Coulter in fifth place (-82).

The Camping World Truck Series will take a three week break but returns Saturday, October 18 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Complete Finishing Order:

POS.	CAR	DRIVER
1	51	Erik Jones
2	54	Darrell Wallace Jr
3	88	Matt Crafton
4	17	Timothy Peters
5	7	Brian Ickler
6	29	Ryan Blaney
7	31	Ben Kennedy
8	13	Jeb Burton
9	32	Tayler Malsam
10	21	Joey Coulter
11	5	John Wes Townley
12	99	Bryan Silas
13	23	Spencer Gallagher
14	98	Johnny Sauter
15	19	Tyler Reddick
16	77	German Quiroga Jr
17	8	Joe Nemechek
18	15	Mason Mingus
19	2	Tyler Young
20	9	Ron Hornaday Jr
21	63	Justin Jennings
22	10	Jennifer Jo Cobb
23	20	Jason White
24	6	Norm Benning
25	50	T.J. Bell
26	8	Jimmy Weller III
27	7	B J McLeod
28	36	Scott Stenzel
29	0	Caleb Roark
30	35	Charles Lewandoski

September 28, 2014

Alex Tagliani Wins Truck Series Pole at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park

Alex Tagliani won the Keystone Light Pole Award and set a new track qualifying record at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with a lap of 80.558 seconds at 109.889 mph. As he leads the field to green in Sunday’s Chevrolet Silverado 250 race, he will also be making his debut in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Tagliani competes in the Canadian Tire Series and has one previous start in the series at this track in 2008 where he finished in fifth place. He also competes in IndyCar.

After qualifying he talked about his preparation for qualifying and racing this weekend.

“We went out, the truck was fast from the get go,” he said. “We had just one little glitch we had to fix, we had some fuel pressure issues. Basically it took about 25 minutes to fix that and then we went and ran and made sure that everything was good. We parked it before the session was over, the guys were happy enough. We used the second practice getting ready for the race tomorrow.”

Tagliani also spoke about being part of the Brad Keselowski Racing team saying, “I feel really honored to be here and drive his truck.”

NASCAR Next driver Gray Gaulding will start beside him on the outside pole. Erik Jones will begin the race in the third position followed by German Quiroga Jr. and Cole Custer to round out the top five.

Several drivers had difficulties keeping their trucks on the track including third place finisher Jones who went off track during qualifying. Joey Coulter, who drove his No. 21 into the tire barriers, qualified in the 15th position. Ryan Blaney, who will start 14th, got sideways and Matt Crafton had similar issues but will begin the race in eighth place.

Series’ point leader Johnny Sauter will start the race from the 11^th position.

The Chevrolet Silverado 250 is scheduled for Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET, with television coverage on FOX Sports 1.

Complete Starting Lineup:

POS.	CAR	DRIVER
1	19	Alex Tagliani
2	20	Gray Gaulding
3	51	Erik Jones
4	77	German Quiroga Jr
5	0	Cole Custer
6	53	Andrew Ranger
7	54	Darrell Wallace Jr
8	88	Matt Crafton
9	17	Timothy Peters
10	32	Cameron Hayley
11	98	Johnny Sauter
12	31	Ben Kennedy
13	9	Brennan Newberry
14	29	Ryan Blaney
15	21	Joey Coulter
16	8	John Hunter Nemechek
17	13	Jeb Burton
18	99	Bryan Silas
19	2	Tyler Young
20	35	Mason Mingus
21	7	Ray Courtemanche Jr
22	50	T.J. Bell
23	63	Scott Stenzel
24	8	B J McLeod
25	36	Justin Jennings
26	6	Norm Benning
27	10	Jennifer Jo Cobb
28	0	Caleb Roark

August 30, 2014

Erik Jones Finds Redemption at Pocono Raceway with Top Ten Truck Run

Erik Jones, the 18 year old driver of the No. 51 ToyotaCare Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports, put his two bad ARCA Racing experiences at Pocono Raceway behind him, redeeming himself with a top-10 finish in his first ever NASCAR Camping World Truck Race at the Tricky Triangle.

Jones finished sixth in his virgin Pocono Truck voyage, surviving ten extra laps and some wild and crazy restarts to do so.

“Yeah, the ARCA races, we were fast but we just didn’t have the finishes we wanted,” Jones said. “The Truck race was good. We definitely got the truck better as the run went on.”

“We had a fast Tundra from the start of practice; I just wish we could’ve been on that outside line on that last restart at the end of the day,” Jones continued. “We probably should’ve run third, but don’t know if we had anything for the win.”

“It was a good day overall,” Jones said. “Eric (Phillips, crew chief) did great calling the race and getting us good track position for the end.”

While the young driver praised his crew chief, he also gave major props to the man with whom he has shared his seat Kyle Busch.

“Having Kyle to talk to – he’s definitely a big resource that I have gone to and said ‘hey, how do you get around this place,’ Jones said. “He’s been a big help to me. Definitely just on the job learning with Kyle on the side and that’s been the way I’ve done it for the past year.”

“My mentor has definitely been Kyle, even throughout my whole career,” Jones continued. “I’ve never really had a mentor or driver coach up until last year when Kyle was helping me out. Especially this year, he has really been helping me out a lot. It’s pretty cool that I have Kyle to go to.”

While Jones gave total credit to Busch for his success at Pocono and throughout the 2014 season to date, he also acknowledged that it is sometimes difficult to pop in and out of the Truck seat with his owner and mentor.

“It’s tough,” Jones said. “You always want to race week in and week out. I’m grateful for every opportunity I get.”

“But it definitely makes it hard to stay in that rhythm when you’re not in the truck and doing it every week,” Jones continued. “We have great race trucks and that definitely makes it a lot easier to get back in when they are so good. It’s tough but we make it work along the way.”

Jones also credited his teammate Darrell Wallace Jr., who drives the Kyle Busch Motorsports No. 54 Tundra, as well as his manufacturer for the success that he has had so far this season and especially at Pocono this weekend.

“Toyota has put a lot into the trucks this year,” Jones said. “I’m getting a strong truck and they put a lot of time building it and in the wind tunnel. It all worked out for this year.”

“My teammate in the No. 54 has been fast and we’ve been fast as well,” Jones continued. “That has been paying off throughout the season and I hope we can keep it going and ahead of the game so far. I think everyone is trying to catch up with us. So, we want to stay ahead of it and stay fast.”

While Jones is a bit unsure of what the future holds for the 2015 season, he has definitely got his goals for the remainder of the season after completing his Pocono run.

“Right now I’ve got the rest of the Truck season with seven more races. So, I’ll do that and two more Nationwide races with Gibbs at Bristol and Phoenix. I’m definitely looking forward to all of them honestly,” Jones said.

“Next year, if I could be back full-time in the truck, that’d be great,” Jones continued. “I’d love to run here for a driver’s championship; hopefully bring one home to Kyle and everybody.”

“Right now we’re focused one hundred percent on the owner’s championship for the second year in a row. I think that would be pretty good for us,” Jones said. “Obviously next year hopefully the focus can be the driver’s championship for me but right now we’re all looking forward to trying to go out and get that owner’s championship.”

Just as he experienced at the Tricky Triangle, Jones admitted that the Truck Series is definitely challenging for him as a young, up and coming driver.

“I’d say the thing I like most about the Truck Series is the competitiveness and running with the veterans,” Jones said. “And it’s always fun to go to the race track and feel like I have a chance to win this weekend. That’s what is so fun for me and everybody on this deal.”

“The challenge for me, last year more so than this year, has been really adjusting to the competition level,” Jones continued. “Some of these guys have been racing trucks for so long. They really know how to run these races and they know what they need their truck to do. It took me awhile last year to get adjusted to that competition level and I’m still really trying to figure it out fully this year. So, that’s’ been the biggest challenge.”

Jones is hoping that his continuing top-10 finishes will also help attract some additional fans to his burgeoning base.

“It’s not easy,” Jones said of his effort to garner new fans. “Obviously social media has been big for me to connect with people that don’t know who I am. That’s been a huge part for me.”

“Just going to all the autograph sessions and doing everything on Twitter to stay involved is how I interact with fans,” Jones continued. “The biggest thing for me is trying to meet people, be friendly with them and be open to them.”

So, what does Jones want fans to know about him, especially after finishing his maiden Truck voyage at Pocono?

“I guess the biggest thing is that I want to be competitive,” Jones said. “I want to be successful. And I want to move on and be fast.”

“That’s the biggest thing to me to be successful every weekend. Hopefully we can keep the top-ten finishing streak going and keep it alive for Toyota.”

August 2, 2014
Darrell Wallace Jr. Transitions from Eldora Win to Tackling the Tricky Triangle

Darrell Wallace Jr., behind the wheel of the No. 54 ToyotaCare Toyota Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports, is ready to make the difficult transition from one of the sport’s highest highs, a coveted Truck win at Eldora Speedway, to the trickiness of Pocono Raceway where he will race the Pocono Mountains 150 in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series.

Even though he is in Long Pond, PA, he is still savoring his ‘W’ in the Mudsummer Classic at Eldora and in fact, just recently had the opportunity to celebrate with his race team.

“Luckily the race was a Wednesday night race so we had the whole weekend to sit back, reflect on it and let it sink in,” Wallace said. “I’m still pumped up about it of course. We had our team dinner last night and we were talking about it.”

“It’s been a fun week.”

“Eldora was a surprise; a shocker,” Wallace said. “But we did it. If we can just finish out the rest of the season strong and we can keep it going, we will be fine.”

While Wallace now has turned his attention to Pocono, he admits that the track is more difficult to figure out than even racing on the dirt, at least in his book.

“It is a tricky triangle for a reason,” Wallace said. “It is grueling on the mindset of a driver, especially me.”

“It’s just hard figuring out every corner because every corner is unique,” Wallace continued. “The guys brought me a fast Toyota Tundra and we just have to figure out where we need to gain speed. That’s the biggest thing. I think it’s mostly me but we will be fine by race time.”

Wallace acknowledges that he may just need to lean on not only his crew chief but also his team owner Kyle Busch and teammate Erik Jones to make it around the three corners of Pocono.

“My crew chief Jerry (Baxter) has been my biggest mentor and coach,” Wallace said. “He has been in the sport for a long time and he knows the ins and outs of it.”

“I listen to what he has to say, through the frustrating moments to winning moments to losing moments, I try to take in everything he says,” Wallace continued. “We move forward as a team and that’s a huge part of being successful. Having the communication and relationship with your team is critical. Jerry is the team leader and we all listen to him. We’re giving him feedback and we’re trying to help each other progress as one.”

“I think that is why we’re so dominant at KBM because we have the communication and we’re hitting on every note.”

“Kyle (Busch) is the centerpiece of this team and we build off him,” Wallace said. “We try to be as fast as him and he is undefeated this season. Toyota is undefeated. We have two wins; Erik (Jones, teammate) has got one. So, we’re on a hot streak right now.”

“We try to be patient and consistent and be ready to win.”

Although his teammate Erik Jones is on the quiet-side, at least quieter than Wallace himself, the driver of the No. 54 has the greatest respect for him, especially with Jones’ performance so far at Pocono, where he has practiced consistently in the top-ten.

“He’s quiet that’s for sure,” Wallace said of Jones. “But Erik is fast and he has speed. We sat on the front row at Iowa and he ended up winning the race. He has always shown speed and he is pretty fast here at Pocono.”

“We bounce ideas off each other and places where we have been. We grow as a team and we will be just fine here.”

So, what will success look like at Pocono for Darrell Wallace Jr.?

“I would definitely be happy with a top five,” Wallace said. “I hate to say it, but we’re on a points run right now. We’re trying to bounce back up through the points.”

“We have to be smart in the race,” Wallace continued. “The tunnel turn is the trickiest corner that you will ever get through.”

“We have to be patient, calm and make smart decisions,” Wallace said. “We’ll let those other drivers make a bone head move and then there’s our top five opportunity.”

“I’m on the level that I want to race,” Wallace continued. “We have to go out there and be smart about every call we make. We can’t get overexcited about what happened before because you get that special moment and then it’s time to get back to work.”

Wallace finished final practice for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in the 1th position with a time of 55.427 seconds and a speed of 162.376 mph. Wallace will qualify Saturday, August 2^nd at 10:10 am and then race the ‘Tricky Triangle’ at 1:00 pm.

August 1, 2014
Darrell Wallace Jr. Recharges With Win at Gateway Motorsports Park

The Drivin’ For Linemen 200 at Gateway Motorsports Park in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series showcased experience levels from veterans to up-an-coming talents, though, at the conclusion it wasn’t a seasoned driver or rookie going to victory lane, it was ‘middle-aged’ Darrell Wallace Jr. capturing his second-career triumph.

Wallace, 21, led a remarkable 85 laps of the 160 scheduled en route to a dominating win in the Truck Series reappearance at the Madison, Illinois track.

The win makes Wallace the third victor in the Truck Series this season, joining his team owner, Kyle Busch and defending champion, Matt Crafton.

It also reinstalls Wallace’s confidence in chasing an elusive Truck Series championship; he’s now ninth in points, 43 markers behind point’s leader Johnny Sauter.

“To have the troubles that we’ve had, and keep cool and come out and put on a dominate show like we did today shows a lot about (our team).” Wallace expressed post-race. “We are down, but we aren’t out of the fight.”

German Quiroga Jr., a former NASCAR Mexico Toyota Series champion, had a strong performance, relieving his team from the struggles throughout these past few weeks. He finished a career-best second, coming up a few car lengths short to Wallace in the race’s final laps.

“I wish it was first, not second,” Quiroga explained in the media center following the effort. “We finished second which is good for our comeback in the championship. We are getting there, closer and closer each week.”

Timothy Peters finished third, respectively, with Sauter, the new point’s leader, and Ron Hornaday Jr. completing the top five at the finish.

Cole Custer, who won the pole, setting a new track record for the event, Ryan Blaney, John Wes Townley, Chase Pistone and Tayler Malsam completed the top-10.

The caution flag flew seven times on the evening, which was the pivotal factor in allowing Wallace to gain track position and score the win.

Wallace rolled off the grid second and rocketed to the race lead before completing the first turn. He led the first 63 laps before succeeding his position on a green flag pit stop, which was disastrous.

Wallace’s crew let down the jack too soon when the tire wasn’t attached, causing damage to the right rear and costing him the race lead.

“It was wild,” Wallace said in victory lane after the race, “We got in a little trouble on the first pit stop, but a little adversity never hurts anybody.”

John Hunter Nemechek then pounced on the misfortune and muscled to the race lead, where he remained for 53-laps before the veteran Crafton took the top spot.

Tires issues, though, derailed a promising run for Crafton. His No. 88 machine pounded the outside wall in turn four bringing out the caution and ending his evening in the garage area.

“Just cut a tire,” said a frustrated Crafton. “Such a fast truck and it was handling great but there was nothing I could do when the tire goes except go into the wall.”

Under the caution, pit stops began, and prevailing was the 17-year-old Nemechek who won the battle off pit lane, giving him the lead, again, with a mere 30 laps remaining.

On the restart, though, Wallace resurfaced from the issues on pit lane and powered back to the top spot leaving an intense battle for second and third behind him.

However, the action was ceased again when Nemechek’s left rear went flat sending him spinning and giving the fans another restart, this time with about eight laps remaining.

Erik Jones, Wallace’s teammate, stole the lead on the race-deciding restart, however, he was clipped and spun around by Quiroga before leading a lap, sending him hard into the inside retaining wall and into the garage area.

“I guess we just got dumped again,” said Jones. “I don’t know what to do about that. I felt like it was our race. We had a great truck and I felt like we should have been there in Victory Lane.”

Quiroga, however, saw the incident in a different fashion.

“He started getting loose and drove in really deep into (Turn) 1 and he was slowing a lot on the exit and was already sideways, and I just kept on driving straight trying not to hit him,” Quiroga explained.

Back to the racing, business was picking up.

With four laps remaining, the machines came back to life and it was Wallace proving his dominance. He snatched the lead and eventually took the checkered flag, claiming his first win since Martinsville last season.

The Truck Series returns to action June 26th at Kentucky Motor Speedway for the UNOH 225.

June 15, 2014
Kyle Busch Four for Four Wins in Truck Series with Monster Mile Victory

Kyle Busch, in his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award Toyota, scored yet another ‘W’ in the Camping World Truck Series Lucas Oil 200, making it four wins in four races this season.

This was Busch’s fourth victory, fourth top-10 finish for the 2014 season, and his fourth victory at Dover International Speedway. Busch achieved his eighth perfect driver rating in the Truck Series as well.

“We had a really good truck,” Busch said. “Eric (Phillips, crew chief) and these guys have done a really good job this year. Last year and maybe a little bit more the year before, we’ve been working on our stuff to make it a little bit faster. All that work’s paying off this year.”

“I think these guys here and everyone back at the shop prepared some good trucks,” Busch continued. “It’s been fun to be up front and lead laps in the Series. A couple of our lead competition guys, the 88 had trouble today and the 29 just came on a little too late. Excited to see Toyota in Victory Lane and the NASCAR Foundation too.”

Busch credits his four for four victory spree on “being focused and in good stuff, believing in it and believing in these guys.” The team that bears his name is first in the Owner Points and Busch is excited to continue to run for that honor.

Busch advised that he was handing the wheel back to Erik Jones for the next few races until he steps back into the race truck at Kentucky.

“I’m really excited now to see Erik Jones get in the car and run some races,” Busch said. “I told him that just because they change the name on the roof, doesn’t mean he shouldn’t end up in Victory Lane. The pressures is on these guys to keep going and keep the Owner’s Championship up in the points.”

While Busch dominated the Monster Mile for most of the race, he was getting some heavy competition from Matt Crafton, that is until Crafton’s tire went down and he hit the wall on Lap 156. The driver of the No. 88 Rip It Energy Fuel/Menards Toyota finished 23^rd and fell out of the points lead as a result.

With Crafton out of the race, Ryan Blaney, behind the wheel of the No. 29 Cooper Standard Ford came on strong to finish in the runner up position. This was Blaney’s second top-10 finish in two races at Dover and is his third top-10 finish of the season.

Blaney now sits in the seventh spot in the points standings.

“We didn’t start in the best spot, in 14th, but got into the top five fairly quickly,” Blaney said. “We had to work our way to the front from there. They did a great job on pit road all day and had good stops. We gained some spots there a few times.”

“With about 50 or 60 to go, we had a pit stop and had a loose left front wheel,” Blaney continued. “Luckily we caught it before we went back green. We were able to come back and change it and then we had a caution maybe 20 laps after that. I was able to line up sixth and finally got a break. But I don’t think it mattered as nobody was going to catch the 51. He was something else.”

Truck Series veteran Johnny Sauter, driver of the No. 96 Nextant/Curb Records Toyota, finished third. This was Sauter’s third top-10 finish in six races at the Monster Mile.

“For whatever reason, we were a long run truck,” Sauter said. “I didn’t run my fastest lap until Lap 18. Having said that, we knew that we needed to get some speed. We started the race too tight and made some adjustments.”

“I’m just proud of my guys, especially the over the wall guys,” Sauter continued. “They made gains by leaps and bounds on pit stops today. We had a solid day. We weren’t the fastest truck by any means but we were comparable to the leaders on the long run. Solid points day for us and the truck is in one piece, which is easier said than done at a place like Dover.”

Ben Kennedy, behind the wheel of the No. 31 Click It or Ticket Chevrolet, was the highest finishing Rookie of the race. And as such, he readily admitted that he had plenty of lessons learned from the Monster Mile track experience.

“It was pretty good,” Kennedy said. “It was a day of ups and downs for us I guess. We were crazy free in a couple of runs and then got really tight. I’m proud of the whole team because coming from practice we weren’t that great. It was a good day for us and a good day for the Delaware Highway Safety team.”

“Changing track conditions is something I really learned today,” Kennedy continued. “It was pretty drastic with the setup we had. We went from the first half of the run being pretty awesome to the second half of the run being wrecking loose.”

“The shade coming up from the casino as the sun sets over there was a big thing for me. Every time I get behind the wheel I learn and gain confidence. Hopefully, we will be up there in the top five running consistently soon.”

Brandon Jones, driver of the NO. 33 Exide Chevrolet, and Joey Coulter, in the No. 21 Allegiant Chevrolet rounded out the top five in the finishing order.

Peters emerged as the points standings leader by one point over Matt Crafton. The unofficial results from the Lucas Oil 200 are as follows:

POS Car # Driver Make

1 51 Kyle Busch Toyota

2 29 Ryan Blaney Ford

3 98 Johnny Sauter Toyota

4 33 Brandon Jones Chevrolet

5 21 Joey Coulter Chevrolet

6 8 John Hunter Nemechek Toyota

7 31 Ben Kennedy Chevrolet

8 19 Tyler Reddick Ford

9 77 German Quiroga Jr Toyota

10 17 Timothy Peters Toyota

11 30 Ron Hornaday Jr Chevrolet

12 5 John Wes Townley Toyota

13 92 Scott Riggs Ford

14 0 Cole Custer Chevrolet

15 50 T.J. Bell Chevrolet

16 54 Darrell Wallace Jr Toyota

17 2 Tyler Young Chevrolet

18 13 Jeb Burton Toyota

19 63 Justin Jennings Chevrolet

20 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb RAM

21 20 Gray Gaulding Chevrolet

22 32 Ben Rhodes Chevrolet

23 88 Matt Crafton Toyota

24 39 Ryan Sieg Chevrolet

25 99 Bryan Silas Chevrolet

26 35 Mason Mingus Toyota

27 9 Brennan Newberry Chevrolet

28 57 Norm Benning Chevrolet

29 7 Jake Crum Chevrolet

30 8 Jimmy Weller III Chevrolet

31 56 Raymond Terczak Jr Chevrolet

32 42 Charles Lewandoski Chevrolet

33 40 Todd Peck Chevrolet

34 0 Ryan Ellis Chevrolet

35 36 Blake Koch RAM

May 31, 2014
Chase Elliott and Erik Jones Make ARCA History With One, Two Finish at Pocono

Two seventeen year olds, Chase Elliott and Erik Jones battled royally at the Tricky Triangle to score a one, two finish in the Pocono ARCA 200.

And in so doing, they made history, becoming the youngest winner and runner up finisher in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards.

“It was a lot of fun,” Chase Elliott said of his race win after starting from the 32^nd position. “We had to start in the back and had some work to do.”

“Lance (McGrew, crew chief) made some good calls getting us off sequence,” Elliott continued. “Being able to take advantage of that and get out in front when the cautions fell, I feel worked out to our advantage.”

“We got out front and stayed there so it worked out.”

The driver of the No. 9 Aaron’s-Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet admitted that it did not hurt having his father Bill coaching him prior to the race and from atop the hauler, especially with his history of winning at Pocono.

“I talked to him a lot by phone and then at the track,” Elliott said. “He gave me some good advice about this place.”

“But the big thing is that he never raced on this surface so a lot of things are different than how they used to be,” Elliott continued. “A lot of things have changed but it is still the same old Pocono and he helped me a lot.”

What did it mean to have his father with him in Victory Lane at Pocono?

“It means a ton to me,” Elliott said. “It wasn’t a little over ten years ago that I was in Victory Lane with Dad and I’ve got some pictures from that.”

“I just think that’s really cool,” Elliott continued. “To come up here to Pocono where Dad raced and to get that opportunity is really cool.”

“I knew it would mean a lot to win and we were fortunate that it worked out.”

Proud father Bill Elliott did have some first words for his young race winner in Victory Lane. And Chase Elliott definitely heeded that advice.

“First thing he said that he was going to keep the champagne because I wasn’t old enough to drink it,” Elliott said. “But I think it meant a lot for dad to go back to Victory Lane with me.”

“I’m not a dad but I feel like that would be cool,” Chase Elliott said. “I’m glad I could take him there today and hope to do it a lot more this year.”

Bill Elliott was indeed proud of his young son, who has become the focus of his racing expertise.

“Someone showed me a picture when I was in Victory Lane in 2002 and here is Chase in Victory Lane now in 2013,” Bill Elliott said. “He did a good job.”

“Everything came together and he did real well,” Elliott continued. “It’s a dream come true for me.”

“He’s done a good job in all he’s raced,” Elliott said. “This is just another era.”

Bill Elliott acknowledged that he was one who pushed the ARCA Series to consider relaxing their rules to allow 16 and 17 year olds to race in the series.

“The kids today have so much more experience and there was a real void there at age 16 or 17,” Elliott said. “ARCA is giving these kids a little extra time to get their feet wet.”

Bill Elliott was not the only proud parent with his son’s historic ARCA win.

“I’m just really thrilled for him,” mom Cindy Elliott said. “They tell me that he is the youngest winner.”

“So, I’m just thrilled for him and for the team and for Lance McGrew, winning now in every division,” Cindy Elliott continued. “What they’ve accomplished today is just wonderful.”

Crew chief Lance McGrew was also very proud of his young racer and felt fortunate that he could showcase his skills on the big track of Pocono.

“Chase is an extremely talented race car driver,” McGrew said. “He is young but he was born and bred that way.”

“He’s got years and years of experience,” McGrew continued. “We were fortunate enough that ARCA made a rule change this season to where we could run on a bigger race track.”

“I felt like with the backing we had and Chase’s experience that we could come here and do well,” McGrew said. “And we did.”

Seventeen year old Erik Jones, behind the wheel of the No. 15 ToyotaCare Toyota, finished runner up to Chase Elliott. And he had to battle his own demons and mistakes before being able to move forward to contend for the lead.

“We ran ourselves out of fuel right before the first pit stop on Lap 42,” Jones said. “We had the whole field lapped at that time.”

“We had to start at the tail end and a violation coming off pit road,” We just didn’t have time to run him back down.”

“We’ll come back in August and see if we can get the win.”

Veteran driver Frank Kimmel, in the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Toyota, finished third. And he was feeling very good about that finish after just getting a few laps on the track because of the rain.

“Pretty good day,” Kimmel said. “We were one of the teams that didn’t test so we just had about three laps before the race.”

“I smacked the wall and I thought I had a flat,” Kimmel continued. “That kind of ruined our day and I couldn’t run with those two.”

“So, we rode it out.”

Kimmel had nothing but praise for the youngsters who beat him on the race track. And yes, he acknowledged that they were really young, with both of them combined having less years of life than he had alone.

“What a remarkable deal these young kids are,” Kimmel said. “I have underwear that old.”

“Chase is a chip off the old block,” Kimmel continued. “I asked Bill (Elliott) who Chase’s father was because he’s an awfully nice kid.”

“These young kids are a lot of fun to race with.”

Tom Hessert, behind the wheel of the No. 77 Barbera’s Autoland Dodge, and Mason Mitchell, driving the No. 99 Happy Cheeks-BeavEx-Reliance Tool Ford, rounded out the top five finishers in the Pocono ARCA 200.

June 9, 2013
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Practice at Rockingham Speedway

Kyle Larson led the first practice session for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Rockingham Speedway with a top speed of 144.31. Ryan Blaney was a close second at 144.127. Ty Dillon, Timothy Peters and Ron Hornaday Jr. completed the top five.

Larson will have to qualify his No. 30 Chevrolet on time tomorrow. Hornaday Jr. will also have to qualify on time in the No. 9 Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevrolet.

Joey Coulter, Max Gresham, Matt Crafton, Johnny Sauter and Jeb Burton rounded out the top ten.

Final practice was led by Chase Elliott. David Starr had the second best time followed by points leader Johnny Sauter in third place. Ryan Blaney and Matt Crafton were fourth and fifth respectively. Darrell Wallace Jr. was sixth in the afternoon session. Erik Jones, Jeb Burton, Kyle Larson and Todd Bodine completed practice in positions seven through ten.

Sauter, who won the first two races of the season, will be going for a record three consecutive victories.

“This is a great way to start the year off with two in a row and I couldn’t be prouder,” said Sauter.

Burton claimed his first pole last week in Martinsville and captured a career best third place finish. He’s hoping to keep the momentum going with another single digit finish at The Rock.

Qualifying will be held Sunday at 11:05 a.m. followed by the ‘North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at The Rock.’ Track president Andy Hillenburg will give the command, “Drivers, start your engines,” at 2:10 p.m. The green flag is set to drop at 2:18 p.m.

April 13, 2013
Erik Jones: Youngest Driver to Start an ARCA Racing Series Race

For the 2012 racing season, ARCA Racing Series officials made the decision to lower the age limit from 16 to 15. The new rules would allow drivers that were 15 years old and older to run short tracks, while waiting till they turned 18 to run the bigger tracks.

Last month at Mobile International Speedway, 15-year-old Erik Jones took advantage of that as he drove the No. 55 Paragon Corvette Reproductions Chevrolet for Venturini Motorsports.

“To be able to go and take advantage of the lower age limit, definitely was a cool experience to be able to be the first one to do that,” Jones says, adding that it’s great to be able to start young and do well.

The day didn’t work out as Jones would’ve planned as mechanical issues would result in a 29^th place finish.

“It was a great learning experience to get used to working with Venturini Motorsports,” Jones, who qualified third for the event, says. “We learned a lot. I personally learned a lot about what I want personally in a racecar and this is a new style of racecar that I haven’t driven before. Just a lot of good experience, had a good run going before we broke. Definitely thought we were going to finish in the top three.”

Jones is hoping to take what he learned at Mobile and apply it to Salem at the end of the month.

“Salem is going to be a good race,” he says. “Venturini has always done well there so I’m hoping to go there and continue their tradition of doing well at Salem. I’ve never been to Salem personally; I’ve heard a lot about it. It sounds like it’s got a lot of character so I always like going to a new race track and we’re really looking forward to it.”

In years past, ARCA left the age limit at 16 as many felt letting drivers younger race was a bad idea. However, Jones says it works due to how they set it up.

“There are definitely some drivers out there at (age) 15 that aren’t going to be ready to move into an ARCA car,” he explains. ”But they’ve got specific qualifications on that so I think they did a good job on lowering the age limit, but not allowing just any 15 year old to hop in these rides.”

Jones started racing at the age of seven in quarter midgets, before moving to Street Stocks when he turned 12.

Getting him started in racing was his grandfather as Jones says his grandpa, “built a lot of motors, drag raced himself, and he is kind of a gearhead. My mom and dad helped get me into quarter midgets and still help me to this day. They’ve been a big part, too, in getting me started.”

At the age of 13, he moved up to Late Models and continues to race at that level well racing in ARCA.

“Late Models definitely teaches you a lot,” the 2011 JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Champion says. “It teaches you to race with a higher horsepower car, and definitely a lot more experienced drivers. Racing with those guys, you learn a lot about how you need to race people, how to be aggressive and how to save your stuff when you don’t need to be aggressive. There are so many things you learn in Late Models that I don’t think you could learn in other places.”

It seems only fitting that it would be Venturini Motorsports being the first team to take advantage of the new rule based on their driver development program that has helped develop many drivers. Jones is well aware of the team’s history as Venturini Motorsports enters its 30^th year of competition.

“It’s cool to drive for a team that has as much as success and been around as long as Venturini Motorsports,” Jones says. “It’s definitely an honor to say the least.”

Jones adds that working with Venturini Motorsports is a good learning experience as he gets to learn about working within a big organization and having teammates.

“To come into a program like that and be able to learn so much, so quick, it’s very beneficial to my racing career,” he adds.

Going down the road in the future, Jones hopes to be at the Sprint Cup level.

“I think every driver would say that they’d like to see themselves in a Sprint Cup racecar racing for somebody,” he says. “Obviously I would like to see myself there. I believe we’ve put ourselves in the right situation to have a good shot at that. Hopefully we can get myself up to the Cup Series and be able to race for a living.

Outside of racing, Jones enjoys listening to music, scuba diving and playing guitar.

April 4, 2012