Month: August 2017

Event:             Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200
Date:               Saturday, September 2, 2017
Location:        Darlington (S.C.) Raceway
Layout:           1.366-mile oval

Kevin Harvick Notes of Interest

• Hunt Brothers Pizza makes its fourth start with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) as a primary sponsor with driver Kevin Harvick.
• Hunt Brothers Pizza will pay tribute to its first year in NASCAR with a throwback paint scheme on the No. 41 Ford Mustang Harvick will drive during the Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 NASCAR XFINITY Series race Saturday at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. The 2017 scheme was inspired by Hunt Brothers Pizza’s No. 70 car that debuted at the 2008 Talladega Superspeedway for what was then known as Haas CNC Racing, the precursor to SHR.
• In addition to the iconic green base, the No. 41 Ford Mustang will feature red and white ribbon accents mirroring the brand’s former “pizza shoppe” design that race fans recognize from convenience stores across the country.
• Hunt Brothers Pizza and Haas CNC Racing first teamed up for the 2008 season. In 2014, Hunt Brothers Pizza reunited with what had become SHR to serve as a sponsor in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. When SHR formed an XFINITY Series team for the 2017 season, Hunt Brothers Pizza became a primary sponsor with Harvick and the No. 41 team.
• The No. 41 Ford Mustang will also include a nod to Harvick’s early days in NASCAR with the Camping World Truck Series. A classic pepperoni pizza is displayed on the car, just as the saw blade sliced across the rear quarter panel of Harvick’s No. 98 Porter Cable Ford F-150 truck in 1999.
• Harvick is making his final of six scheduled XFINITY Series starts in the No. 41 Ford Mustang for SHR in 2017.
• He finished fourth at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March, third at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth in April, second at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway in May, fourth at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta in July, and sixth at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in early August.
• Harvick has one pole, two top-five finishes, eight top-10s and 135 laps led in 14 XFINITY starts at Darlington.
• Harvick won the pole at Darlington in August 2003 with a lap at 167.516 mph.
• His XFINITY Series career includes 46 wins, 182 top-five finishes, 255 top-10s, 25 poles and 9,444 laps led in 340 starts.
• Harvick will be joined Saturday by SHR teammate Cole Custer in the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang at Darlington.

Kevin Harvick, Driver No. 41 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang

Hunt Brothers Pizza is running a paint scheme that throws it back to its roots in racing and also gives a nod to your history. What does running the Hunt Brothers Pizza throwback scheme like that mean to you?

“As Hunt Brothers Pizza celebrates its 10th season in NASCAR, I am honored to have been a part of its journey as it has supported me in the Truck, XFINITY and NASCAR Cup Series. But I am completely floored by the company’s creative way of implement an element of my beginnings in NASCAR for this memorable weekend. This is our eighth season together and Hunt Brothers Pizza has been a great sponsor over the years. I’m looking forward to a strong race in its throwback car.”

What makes Darlington Raceway so unique in terms of the racing?

“Darlington is a track with a lot of history and is one that you circle on your calendar each year. This track has a lot of character and it is easy to make mistakes, so we just focus on ourselves, race the track and try to avoid making any of those mistakes.”

What is it about Darlington that makes it special for you as a competitor?

“For me, personally, I look forward to coming to Darlington every year just for the fact that it means so much to our sport and has such a huge history in what we have accomplished as a sport altogether. To be able to come back and race and be able to experience things that they have experienced through the years on a racetrack that has been repaved, but its original shape is still the same. To me that is something that is pretty neat. I’m looking forward to the weekend.”

Event:               Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 (Round 24 of 33)
Date:                 Sep. 2, 2017
Location:          Darlington (S.C.) Raceway
Layout:             1.366-mile oval

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

• • The Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 will mark Cole Custer’s 29^th career NASCAR XFINITY Series start and his first ever start at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. 
  • Darlington Raceway will mark Custer’s sixth track of the season where he will race for the first time. At the previous five – Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin and Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth – he has earned two top-five finishes and three top-10s. 
  • This weekend, Darlington will host the third annual NASCAR “Throwback Weekend.” In conjunction with teams, the track is showcasing iconic paint schemes, personalities and moments from the mid-to-late 1980s.
  • Custer and Stewart-Haas Racing are recognizing two-time XFINITY Series champion Sam Ard and emulating his 1983 and 1984 championship-winning racecar via a throwback paint scheme on the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang.
  • Custer’s best finish in the 23 XFINITY Series races run this season is fourth, earned June 3 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. It was his 13^th top-10 and fifth top-five and it equaled his career-best finish.
  • Custer’s best qualifying effort in the 23 XFINITY Series races run this season is third, earned twice – April 22 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and June 10 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. Custer has 13 top-10 starts and three top-five starts this season.
  • Custer has earned four top-five finishes, 11 top-10s and has led 29 laps so far in the 2017 XFINITY Series season.
  • Custer is third in the XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year standings, 57 points behind leader William Byron and five points behind second-place Daniel Hemric.
  • Custer has earned six Rookie of the Race awards this season. Rookie of the Race awards are given to the highest-finishing XFINITY Series rookie at each race.
  • Custer is sixth in the XFINITY Series driver standings, 276 points behind series leader Elliott Sadler.

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

How special is it to honor Sam Ard in the official throwback weekend of NASCAR at Darlington Raceway?

“The double-zero number has been part of my entire NASCAR career and, over the years, I’ve gotten to know its history and met some of the people who worked with Sam and saw him race. The more I learn about Sam and all that he accomplished, the more impressive it becomes. I feel like I’m driving his car and I want to make him and his family proud. Guys like Sam Ard helped shape the sport into what it is today. Without him, I don’t know if the opportunity to drive racecars for a living would exist. I’m grateful for it and I’d like him and his family to know it. I would like to emulate his actions on and off the track. Usually, the guys who dominate the series aren’t the most liked drivers. Sam Ard was a rare case where fans actually cheered for a driver who won so much. He was respected on the track and all through the garage.”

What are your expectations coming to Darlington Raceway for the first time? 

“We’re just hoping Sam’s success rubs off on us a little bit this weekend. Hopefully there’s still some luck left in that 00 paint scheme. We tested a pretty good car there so I’m optimistic about the weekend and we’re going to do all we can to keep it up front. It was funny, though. The first day of testing I didn’t hit the wall. The second day I hit the wall just about an inch on my rear-quarter panel. Then I hit a foot, and then the whole quarter panel. I hit it about three times, but never too bad. That’s why they call it a test, though.”

What were your initial thoughts on Darlington when you tested, and what have you learned that you will bring back here in the Sport Clips VFW 200?  

“My first impression of Darlington was that it was just a real racetrack. Darlington is a place where you really have to drive it and you really have to be up on the wheel and pay respect to every single lap out there. It’s a really cool place to run and its’s challenging. I wish we had more tracks like Darlington.”

What are your thoughts on the throwback-themed race weekend at Darlington?

“I think the throwback weekend is something that NASCAR and Darlington need to keep doing. It’s really good for the sport right now. It takes us back to our roots and reminds us of where this sport came from. Being able to honor people like Sam Ard, who helped pioneer the sport, is humbling.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

What are your thoughts on the No. 00 throwback paint scheme and do you think you will have the same success as Sam did? 

“I am really excited we chose to run this paint scheme. It is an honor to support such an iconic era of racing where Sam Ard dominated the XFINITY Series and helped pioneer the sport. We should have a lot of people cheering for us in Sam’s home state. We had a good test at Darlington in May so, hopefully, we can make his family and all of his fans proud.”

He’s got the Daytona 500 and he’s got the 600-mile race at Charlotte. Now he just needs Indianapolis and Darlington.

And Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion, is ready for another milestone win in Sunday night’s Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

Only four drivers have won the four crown jewels and they are legends of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick are the only guys to see the checkered flag first at the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400, Coca-Cola 600 and Southern 500.

Busch has had some success at Darlington, nearly winning the spring race in 2003. In one of the most memorable finishes in NASCAR history, Busch came up .002 of a second shy of victory at the track “Too Tough to Tame” when he was nosed out by Ricky Craven in one of the closest finishes in Cup Series competition since NASCAR instituted electronic timing in 1993.

Busch also finished third in 2010 and he won the pole position in September 2001 and April 2013. And if Busch is to be successful, he’ll have to battle the odd shape of Darlington’s racing oval.

Darlington is an egg-shaped oval, 1.366 miles in length – the odd shape because the western portion of the oval needed a tighter radius on the turns as founder Harold Brasington promised Sherman Ramsey, who owned a farm next to the property, that he wouldn’t disturb his minnow pond when he built the track in 1949.

The odd shape also means that, to find the fast way around the track, drivers run against the outside walls in each turn, sometimes brushing up against the wall and thus earning what has affectionately become known as a “Darlington Stripe” on the right side of the car. And the black marks left on the walls by the tires rubbing up against them all race weekend have led to the track’s other nickname – “The Lady in Black.”

Busch is hoping he can get a little stripe on his car, on the road to victory, to get another of the four crown jewels of NASCAR.

KURT BUSCH, Driver of the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What would a win mean at Darlington?

“I’ve been close and it would mean the world to me because, when I first went there, I had no idea how difficult that track was going to be. And how narrow it is and how different both ends of the track are. Over the years, I quickly gained an appreciation for the nostalgia and the setting of Darlington, South Carolina and what it means for our sport. With all that mixed in together, I’d love to win that race. It’s a tough track because it changes dramatically with rubber and you have to have tire management there. You have to balance a lot of things over 500 miles.”

Are these 500 miles at Darlington the most difficult in all of NASCAR?

“Yeah, it’s flat out the most difficult. I think 500 miles at Darlington is tougher than 600 miles at Charlotte because you are up on the wheel all day and you’re right on the edge and, when you slip over that edge, you get that Darlington stripe and usually you get a fender rub and then you’re working out of a hole. Attrition usually wipes out a few guys and you don’t want to be one of those, and so you’re just right on that edge all night long.”

What makes Darlington unique? 

“Darlington demands so much attention and respect. It’s similar to a Bristol like that. It’s hard to get the setup perfect because both ends of the racetrack are so different.”

What do you think of the retro feel of Darlington?

“It’s really a fun weekend. It feels like a field trip experience when you’re a kid. It’s like when you go out with your friends and you all get dressed up together. The first year, it was about the cars. The second year, it seemed like the crew guys took over and they had all their outfits. There are diecasts that are made just for that race. Chip Wile (former president of Darlington) hit a grand slam with throwback weekend and I think all of us look forward to that. And I think the fans do, as well. It definitely helps bridge the past to the present and overall just creates a fun weekend.”

Do you remember your first race at Darlington? Your first stripe?  

“My first race and first stripe – that place chewed me up and spit me out. I think I wrecked 20 times, kept bouncing off wall. I wore out the tires but kept going. I probably finished 40^th my first time there. It really was an eye-opener on how tough NASCAR was going to be.”

Other than the finish with Ricky Craven at Darlington, do you have any other memorable moments that stand out? 

“The biggest moment at Darlington I ever had was finishing second to Ricky Craven in 2003 – everyone knows that race. It’s one of the best finishes in NASCAR history. But, probably the next-biggest moment would be during my championship run in 2004. I had an ill-handling car and still managed to finish sixth with it due to good pit stops. That was a perfect moment because it was our championship to lose, with where we finished that day in 2004. That was back when Darlington used to be in the playoffs.”

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Beer Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), is helping to turn back the clock this weekend at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, site of Sunday night’s Southern 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. In true Southern 500 fashion – and celebrating the race’s theme of turning back the clock to the1985 through 1989 era – Harvick’s No. 4 Busch Beer Ford will feature a bold look inspired by Busch Beer’s iconic “Head for the Mountains” advertisements from the late 1980s.

Old-school race fans will recognize the paint scheme on Harvick’s car that is inspired by the No. 11 car piloted by Cale Yarborough during the 1979 season, but with a distinct twist: the rearing black stallion that was a mainstay in Busch advertising in the 1980s is prominently featured on the hood.

Yarborough drove the iconic Busch Beer paint scheme in one of the most significant races in NASCAR history – the 1979 Daytona 500. With most of the eastern part of the United States covered in snow thanks to massive winter storms, millions tuned in to watch the race, which was the first 500-mile NASCAR race televised in its entirety.

The 1979 Daytona 500 featured intense racing and an incredible finish that resulted in a brawl following the checkered flag. On the final lap, race leaders Yarborough and Donnie Allison collided on the backstretch. Neither driver was able to finish the race, opening the door for Richard Petty, who trailed by nearly a half lap at the time of the incident, to win his sixth Daytona 500.

As Petty made his way to victory lane, a fight broke out between Yarborough, Allison and his brother Bobby Allison inside of turn three where the cars came to rest in the infield following the on-track collision. The live television broadcast caught both the finish and the fight and NASCAR gained national publicity.

Yarborough drove the No. 11 Busch Beer car for the entire 1979 and 1980 seasons. He went on to score 10 wins, 38 top-five finishes, 44 top-10s, 15 poles and led 4,130 laps over the 62-race span.

Darlington is the perfect setting to celebrate Busch Beer’s deep racing roots, which date back nearly 40 years. Highlights of Busch’s storied racing heritage include sponsoring the Busch Pole Award in 1978, presented to Cup Series pole winners each week. Busch introduced the Busch Clash in 1979, held each year at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway the week prior to the Daytona 500. And it was title sponsor of NASCAR’s stepping-stone division – currently known as the Xfinity Series – from 1984 through 2007. Busch Beer also held the “Official Beer of NASCAR” status from 1988 through 1997.

While Harvick will drive a No. 4 Ford honoring the history of his sponsor Busch Beer, he is looking to score his second Cup Series win at the 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval.

In 2014, Harvick won the 65^th running of the iconic Southern 500 – one of the crown jewels on the 36-race Cup Series schedule – in dominating fashion. He started from the pole and led 238 of 374 laps en route to beating runner-up Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the finish line by .558 of a second.

The win at Darlington was the second of Harvick’s five Cup Series wins during his championship season.

With only two races remaining before the start of the 10-race Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, Harvick would like to add his second win of the season at Darlington Sunday night. He scored his first of the year at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway in June.

The win at Sonoma allowed Harvick to clinch his spot in the playoff field for the 11th time in his career. He only needs to attempt to qualify for the remaining two regular-season races to make his playoff status official.

While Harvick and the No. 4 team are locked into the playoff field by points and wins, gaining playoff points via stage wins and race wins is now their top priority through the next two races, starting this weekend at Darlington.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Busch Beer Ford Fusion:

Your thoughts about heading back to Darlington for this special race weekend?

“Darlington has kind of found its niche with all the throwback schemes and all the things that they do with the snack bars, tickets and all the cars. It’s great to see all the teams participate – and for me it’s something that bring backs a lot of memories as to when Fred Wagenhals was around selling diecasts and creating programs and things like we used to do in the past. It’s great when you see a program come together like that.”

What’s it like to have a past driver associated with your throwback weekend?

“We had a little experience with that last year with Cale Yarborough. We had him at the racetrack, driving around in the pace car and seeing some of the old-school guys who work on my racecar be as excited as they were, guys who don’t ever really get excited about anything. To see how excited some of those guys were when Cale came, we took a picture with the whole team at the car and, to have the whole paint scheme and everything to go with it, was really great. We do a lot of things with those guys now at the NASCAR Hall of Fame. To see those guys now at the racetrack signing autographs for the fans adds just a little bit to that event. To me, last year it was really neat to have Cale there, have him around and talk to him. It’s something that means a lot because they’re a big part of the reason we’re here today.”

An odd, egg-shaped oval – Darlington (S.C.) Raceway – is a track that has been called one of the toughest of all on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule, so much so that it earned the nickname “The Track Too Tough to Tame.”

The 1.366-mile raceway’s shape stems from a promise track founder Harold Brasington made to Sherman Ramsey, a neighboring farm owner, that he wouldn’t disturb his minnow pond when the track was built in 1949. As a result, the western half of the track features a tighter radius in the turns.

“It’s a challenging track,” said Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). “It’s probably one of the toughest that we have on our schedule. There are four completely different corners and you’re typically entering them at high speed and usually right up against the wall. There is very minimal room for error, which is how you end up with the famous ‘Darlington Stripe.’ You have to definitely be aggressive and get the most out of it, but you don’t want to hit the wall because that’s a pretty big setback.”

In five NASCAR Cup Series starts at “The Track Too Tough to Tame,” Patrick has earned a few “Darlington Stripes.” Her best NASCAR Cup Series finish at the track is a 22nd-place effort she earned in 2014. In her lone NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Darlington, Patrick started 15th and brought home a 12th-place result in 2012.

When she returns to the track this weekend for Sunday night’s Southern 500, Patrick will be looking to improve upon her record at Darlington, not only for herself and the No. 10 team, but also to help pay tribute to a NASCAR legend.

This weekend, many teams in the NASCAR industry will celebrate the heritage of the sport by running throwback paint schemes. As a part of that effort, SHR will honor 2018 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Robert Yates with a special paint scheme on the No. 10 Ford Fusion Patrick will race on Sunday.

After working in the sport for more than two decades, Yates launched his own team, Robert Yates Racing, in the late 1980s. In 1996, the team expanded to a two-car operation, fielding the No. 88 Quality Care/Ford Credit Ford for driver Dale Jarrett. The decision by Yates to add a second car to the stable resulted in Jarrett winning the 1999 championship with a paint scheme that Patrick’s No. 10 Ford Credit Ford Fusion will emulate at Darlington.

Ford Motor Credit Company is the financial services arm of Ford Motor Company. The brand was first seen on a NASCAR racecar in 1994, when it sponsored Elton Sawyer in what is now the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The sponsorship was very successful, so much so that in 1996 it expanded into the NASCAR Cup Series, which allowed Yates’ operation to become a two-car team.

Jarrett ran the No. 88 Quality Care/Ford Credit Ford paint scheme from 1996 through 2000, earning 20 wins, nine poles and leading more than 5,000 laps. That tally includes wins at Darlington in the 1997 and 1998 TranSouth Financial 400.

“I’m excited to run a true throwback scheme this year,” Patrick said. “It’s great that we’re able to honor Robert Yates and all he’s done for our sport. Robert and Dale had a lot of success in the Ford Credit Ford, and I hope we can add to that this weekend at Darlington.”

As the series returns to Darlington for the Southern 500, the chance to honor Yates will also be a special one for Billy Scott, crew chief for Patrick and the No. 10 Ford Credit Ford Fusion.

“I grew up a fan of Robert,” Scott said. “Everything I raced from the time I was 5 years old until I finally quit driving myself in my early 20s had a No. 28 on it. I just always idolized what he had done, what his career path was and how he was able to work his way into the sport and work his way up to being a car owner. My first interview when I went to work over there (at Yates Racing) was with the two of them (Robert and Doug Yates) sitting in a room. I remember walking in and being too nervous to talk pretty much as I sat down to interview. I would never trade the time I spent there with them.

“The sport has changed a lot over the years, but this is where our roots are and guys like Robert are the ones who worked so hard to build the foundation that we get to enjoy now. This tribute to Robert is truly deserved.”

DANICA PATRICK, Driver of the No. 10 Ford Credit Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Darlington’s Throwback weekend has really resonated inside and outside of NASCAR. What is your favorite part of the weekend?  

“I like to see the old paint schemes. I don’t know my NASCAR history nearly as well as some others and I’m not really much of a history buff, but I feel like learning about the past is what makes things valuable. It’s what makes something prestigious and what creates legends. For me, the throwback weekend has been a really good way to remind people of where we came from and the history of the sport. It’s also really cool to see the outfits some of the girls walk down pit lane in, whether it’s big, big hair and bell-bottomed pants or the fashion from whatever decade we’re celebrating. It’s a really fun weekend and it’s a great way for us as a series in NASCAR to remind people where we came from and to give back to the history of our sport. I’m excited to run a true throwback scheme this year. It’s great that we’re able to honor Robert Yates and all he’s done for our sport.”

In addition to the special paint scheme on your No. 10 Ford Fusion, you have another throwback element this weekend. Talk about that.  

“On top of running a true throwback paint scheme this year, I’m actually going to run a paint scheme on my helmet, which I almost never change. It’s just like my very first paint job on my helmet when I raced go-karts. Ironically, it has the same red and white swoops coming from the front and down the back like the No. 10 Ford Credit Ford, so it’s going to match the paint scheme really well. There will be a lot of reminiscing at Darlington.” 

Talk about racing at Darlington.  

“It’s a challenging track. It’s probably one of the toughest that we have on our schedule. There are four completely different corners and you’re typically entering them at high speed and usually right up against the wall. There is very minimal room for error, which is how you end up with the famous ‘Darlington Stripe.’ You have to definitely be aggressive and get the most out of it, but you don’t want to hit the wall because that’s a pretty big setback. It helps to have a good setup to start out with and from there you do your best to keep your bumpers clean so you don’t have tire rubs, accidents and things like that. In the Southern 500, there are usually a lot of cautions and a lot of things happen, so there’s a lot of opportunity for things to change and for you to try something different. It’s definitely our longest race of the year, so you have to be patient and not make mistakes so that you’re still in it at the end.”

Describe the Darlington Stripe and what it’s like to get one.

“I would say that, because my background is in IndyCar, I don’t look at gray areas of the track and think there’s a lot of grip there. I’m not used to driving by a wall. I didn’t grow up racing on dirt and running up on the cushion. The high line is something to me that I have to have a lot of confidence in the car to be able to go there with the kind of speed that needs to be taken. I’ve definitely earned the ‘Darlington Stripe’ and, sometimes, there’s just not much you can do about it. I’ve even gotten it going down the straightaway where the right-rear (tire) catches the wall and pulls the front in. You’ve got to stay focused at all times, especially at a place like Darlington, where you have to be up on the wheel for all the corners because they’re all pretty different. It’s earned through pushing those boundaries of how high you can take the car and how much speed you can take doing it.”

Are you comfortable racing at Darlington, or is that even possible?

“I have found that when the car is comfortable and the car is good, any track can feel very easy, as well as extremely difficult. So, we’ll see how it goes and how good the car is and how comfortable it feels for me. I do always feel like the first couple of laps at Darlington seem like I haven’t been there in five years. Like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s the way turn four looks.’ Given the fact that there are so many tracks that we go to twice and many of them are similar and have a typical mile-and-a-half layout, when we go to Darlington, being such a unique track, it feels like it’s been a while since we’ve been there.”

ROBERT YATES, 2018 NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductee and Championship Team Owner and Engine Builder:

The No. 10 Ford team is honoring you with a special throwback paint scheme in the Southern 500 at Darlington this weekend. Talk about what means to you.

“The No. 88 Quality Care/Ford Credit Ford was definitely a memorable program for our team. We won the Daytona 500 in Dale’s very first race in that scheme in 1996 and went on to win many more races and the championship in 1999. It was incredibly gratifying to have Ford as my sponsor and manufacturer, especially when we beat the competition. Getting to see this scheme run again will bring back many great memories. I can’t thank everyone at Stewart-Haas Racing enough for honoring me and everyone that was on the team during those years.”

BILLY SCOTT, Crew Chief of the No. 10 Ford Credit Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Talk about what the special Ford Credit paint scheme honoring Robert Yates means to you.

“The paint scheme our team gets to take to Darlington means a lot to me. Not only did I grow up a huge fan idolizing one of our sport’s legends, but I also had the privilege of working for him. It’s a true honor to get to celebrate him this weekend.”

Your NASCAR career started at Robert Yates Racing and you got to work with Robert and Doug Yates. How did all you learned during your time there help prepare you as you moved up the ranks to be a crew chief in NASCAR?

“I grew up a fan of Robert. Everything I raced from the time I was 5 years old until I finally quit driving myself in my early 20s had a No. 28 on it. I just always idolized what he had done, what his career path was and how he was able to work his way into the sport and work his way up to being a car owner. My first interview when I went to work over there (at Yates Racing) was with the two of them (Robert and Doug Yates) sitting in a room. I remember walking in and being too nervous to talk pretty much as I sat down to interview. I would never trade the time I spent there with them. Having Robert in the hauler every week up there bouncing ideas off of us – that’s the kind of passion that this sport was built on and what drove me to work in it. Engine building was Robert’s passion and a majority of what he did, but he was involved on the car side, too. He understood them well, had input, always had new ideas and was never satisfied with what we had. He was always thinking outside the box for different stuff. Getting to be exposed to that is something I treasure. That’s why we pay tribute to him. The sport has changed a lot over the years, but this is where our roots are and guys like Robert are the ones who worked so hard to build the foundation that we get to enjoy now. This tribute to Robert is truly deserved.”

With only two races remaining in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series regular season and locked in a battle for one of the final few playoff berths, Clint Bowyer is calling on help from NASCAR legend Mark Martin at Sunday night’s Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

Bowyer’s No. 14 Ford fielded by Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) will sport a Carolina Ford Dealers paint scheme nearly identical to the scheme Martin drove in 43 NASCAR Xfinity Series races between 1988 and 1991 for Bill Davis Racing. The Batesville, Arkansas native earned three Xfinity Series victories and scored 11 top-five finishes in the predominantly blue, white and red Carolina Ford Dealers Thunderbird.

“We’ll take advantage of anything we can right now and you can’t do much better than having Mark Martin on your side,” said Bowyer, who trails Jamie McMurray by 58 points for the 16^th and final playoff berth. He needs to make up that deficit or win during the next two races to be part of NASCAR’s postseason that begins Sept. 17 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois.

Bowyer knows the importance of Sunday’s race to his playoff hopes and those of his crew chief Mike Bugarewicz-led team, but he’s aware the Darlington race marks “The Official Throwback Weekend of NASCAR” when the industry honors the sport’s history. Last year, 36 Cup Series teams competed with throwback paint schemes in the Southern 500, the most in any single NASCAR event in the sport’s history.

“I think it’s important to remember our legends,” Bowyer said. “This weekend will be all about Mark and the heroes of this sport. When you think about my heroes and the people I really looked up to in this sport, Mark was at the top of the list. He was my teammate in 2012 and it meant so much to me to race alongside him back in the MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing) days.”

Martin won 40 times in what is now the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, scored 271 top-five finishes and 453 top-10s. He also won 56 poles. His last Cup Series race was at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 17, 2013 in SHR’s No. 14 as he subbed for an injured Tony Stewart.

Martin said the Carolina Ford Dealers paint scheme has a special place in his heart and in his career.

“The throwback program at Darlington is the coolest thing I’ve ever been a part of and seeing this car is really a time check, a time stamp for me,” said the 58-year-old Martin, who entered the NASCAR Hall of Fame this year. “The Carolina Ford Dealers was the first sponsor I had that did full-fledged television marketing. They did lots of radio spots and lots of television spots. It was really my first sponsor that I did that kind of work with.”

Bowyer, an eight-time NASCAR Cup Series winner, is in his first year driving SHR’s No. 14 Ford Fusion after replacing three-time champion Stewart, who retired as a NASCAR driver at the end of the 2016 season. The No. 14 has scored the 10^th-most points of any car in 2017 with five top-fives and 10 top-10s.

Bowyer finished 19^th Aug. 19 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, so he needs a good finish at Darlington, followed by similar results at the regular-season finale Sept. 9 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway, to enter the playoffs.

He owns only one top-10 finish in 11 races at Darlington. Maybe the presence of Martin will change that this weekend.

“Darlington has always been a big race for our sport, but this playoff race only adds to the intensity,” Martin said. “I’d love for Clint to have a good run or, better yet, win the race. It’s been a while since a Carolina Ford Dealers paint scheme visited victory lane, so doing it again in Darlington would be special. It would mean a lot to me and make a lot of people happy, especially Clint.”

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Carolina Ford Dealers Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What is your strategy to gain 58 points in the next two races? 

“We just have to win. A win and the points will take care of themselves.”

What are your thoughts on Darlington? 

“I like the uniqueness of the track. I’ve struggled to have good finishes there but we’ve always raced well. We just can’t seem to seal the deal at the end. Something always goes haywire in the end but, sooner or later, we are going to overcome that and have a good weekend. Doing that this weekend would be perfect.”

Do you remember your first Darlington experience? 

“My first Cup race at Darlington was 2007 and I won the pole. Truth be told, it scared the daylights out of me.”

Event:               Johnsonville 180 (Round 23 of 33)
Date:                 Aug. 27, 2017
Location:          Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
Layout:             4-mile, 14-turn road course

Cole Custer Notes of Interest 

• The Johnsonville 180 will mark Cole Custer’s 27^th career NASCAR XFINITY Series start and his first XFINITY Series start at Road America.
• Custer comes into Road America with only two road-course starts in the XFINITY Series, both of which came this year at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, respectively, with a best finish of 12^th at Watkins Glen. However, Custer has a total of 13 road-course starts spread across the XFINITY Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East/West. His best road-course effort came in 2016 when he won the pole for the Truck Series race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park and led a race-high 39 laps before finishing second to John Hunter Nemechek by just .034 of a second in a door-banging, tire-smoking run off the final corner to the checkered flag. 
• Custer’s best finish in the 22 XFINITY Series races run this season is fourth, earned June 3 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. It was his 12^th top-10 and fifth top-five and it equaled his career-best finish.
• Custer’s best qualifying effort in the 22 XFINITY Series races run this season is third, earned twice – April 22 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and June 10 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. Custer has 15 top-10 starts and five top-five starts this season.
• Last weekend at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, Custer ran in and around the top-five for the majority of the race and earned his 10^th top-10 of the 2017 season. He was the highest finishing rookie in Stage 1 and the highest finishing XFINITY Series regular in a Ford.
• Custer has earned four top-five finishes, 10 top-10s and has led 29 laps so far in the 2017 XFINITY Series season.
• Custer is third in the XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year standings, 55 points behind leader William Byron and nine points behind second-place Daniel Hemric.
• Custer has earned six Rookie of the Race awards this season. Rookie of the Race awards are given to the highest-finishing XFINITY Series rookie at each race.
• Custer is sixth in the XFINITY Series driver standings, 274 points behind series leader Elliott Sadler.
• Custer will also compete Sunday in the Road America 100 ARCA Series race prior to the Johnsonville 180. It will mark Custer’s sixth ARCA race since 2015.

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

What are the challenges of running a road course?  

“In road-course racing, the competition is more on the driver’s shoulders compared to your traditional oval-styled track. You’re on the edge of your seat for the entire race and even the smallest mistake could take you out of the race. I enjoy road-course racing and challenging my skills as a driver. This is our last road-course race of the season, so I’m hoping to drive my Haas Automation Ford Mustang to a solid finish.”

With the playoffs approaching, has your strategy changed at all? 

“Yeah. I think we’ll focus more on earning stage wins to put us in a good spot for when the playoffs start. A win would really set us up well so, hopefully, we can put together a strong car and I can run us up front here in the next couple of races.”

How has your first season at Stewart-Haas Racing been so far?

“It’s been a dream come true. At the beginning of the year, we started with an empty shop and a lot of work to do. We got off to a rocky start, being collected in a few accidents, but we’ve made a good comeback. Our goal at the beginning of the season was to earn a handful of top-fives and top-10s and battle our way to the playoffs. For a first-year team that started with nothing, we feel that we have definitely met our expectations.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

After a solid run at Watkins Glen and unfortunate luck at Mid-Ohio, how are you and the team positioned for Road America? 

“Last week was just full of bad luck, but we were able to run back out there in the second stage and took some more notes. I think we’ll have a good run this weekend with all of the notes we took from Watkins Glen and Mid-Ohio. We’re focused on earning a win or stage wins to set us up better for the playoffs.”