Month: September 2020

CHASE BRISCOE – 2020 NXS Richmond I Race Report

Event:  Go Bowling 250 (Round 24 of 33)
Series:  NASCAR Xfinity Series
Location:  Richmond (Va.) Raceway (.75-mile oval)
Format:  250 laps, broken into three stages (75 laps/75 laps/100 laps)
Start/Finish:  5th/11th (Running, completed 249 of 250 laps)
Point Standing:  2nd (986 points, 67 out of first)


Race Winner:  Justin Allgaier of JR Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Stage 1 Winner:  Austin Cindric of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:  Justin Allgaier of JR Motorsports (Chevrolet)


Overview:
Chase Briscoe had a quiet outing Friday night at Richmond (Va.) Raceway as he finished 11th in the Go Bowling 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race to open the doubleheader event at the .75-mile oval. Briscoe put his No. 98 Go Bowling Ford Mustang at the front of the field twice for seven laps during the first stage of the 250-lap race, but he slipped back to 11th at the end of the second stage. A lack of forward drive and a caution-free final stage prevented Briscoe from advancing past 10th place, with the 25-year-old racer eventually falling outside of the top-10 in the final 16 laps. It was one of just seven races this year where Briscoe has not finished among the top-10. He leads the series in victories with six.


Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 98 Go Bowling Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“It was a tough night for us. We struggled to find grip all night and didn’t really have a long run or short run car. We just didn’t seem to get anywhere with adjustments until the pit stop at the end of the second stage. I was still struggling on entry (into the corner) toward the end of the race, and we didn’t get another chance to pit and make any progress on our Go Bowling Ford, so we were just stuck where we were. We’ll regroup and come back tomorrow with a plan to go for a win.”


Notes:
● Briscoe led twice for seven laps to bring his laps-led total for the season to 514. He has led 317 more laps this year than he did in 2019.
● Briscoe finished second in Stage 1 to earn nine bonus points.
● Justin Allgaier won the Go Bowling 250 to score his 13th career Xfinity Series victory, his second of the season and his first at Richmond. His margin of victory over second-place Justin Haley was .604 of a second.
● There were five caution periods for a total of 31 laps.
● Only nine of the 37 drivers in the Go Bowling 250 finished on the lead lap.
● Austin Cindric remains the championship leader after Richmond with a 67-point advantage over second-place Briscoe.


Next Up:
The second event of the Xfinity Series doubleheader at Richmond is the Virginia is For Racing Lovers 250 on Saturday. It starts at 2 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

CHASE BRISCOE – 2020 NXS Richmond Race Advance

Event:  Xfinity Series Doubleheader (Rounds 24-25 of 33)
Date:  Sept. 11-12, 2020
Location:  Richmond (Va.) Raceway
Layout:  .75-mile oval

Chase Briscoe Notes of Interest

•  This weekend’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Richmond (Va.) Raceway marks the series’ fourth and final doubleheader of the season. Two Xfinity Series races will be held on back-to-back days at the .75-mile oval and each race is 250 laps. Friday’s Go Bowling 250 begins at 7 p.m. EDT and Saturday’s Virginia is for Racing Lovers 250 begins at 2 p.m. NBCSN and SiriusXM will provide live coverage of both races.

•  Chase Briscoe’s No. 98 Ford Mustang will feature Go Bowling for the first time in 2020. Go Bowling, the consumer-facing brand of the bowling industry, is utilizing its longstanding partnership with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) to promote its Go Bowling America league program to consumers across the United States. The Go Bowling America league program focuses on bringing families, young adults and kids alike back to the lanes in a healthy and safe fashion, as centers around the country have implemented strict measures to ensure the wellness of its employees and customers who come to bowl. Go Bowling, in conjunction with its industry partners, has introduced detailed safety protocols to the thousands of U.S. bowling centers that include social distancing recommendations, use of personal protective equipment where required, and guidelines for sanitizing balls and shoes, as well as other equipment in the facility. Additionally, the Go Bowling America league program provides every bowler who joins at a participating bowling center with his or her own, brand-new bowling ball to minimize shared contact.

•  Briscoe has finished no worse than 10thduring the three previous Xfinity Series doubleheader events this season and has twice closed out the doubleheader weekend with a win – June 14 at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Aug. 23 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. Briscoe’s wins at Homestead and Dover followed tumultuous beginnings for the No. 98 team in each of those doubleheaders. At Homestead, Briscoe started the first race of the series seven laps down after losing equipment on the pace laps of the 147-lap event. He drove from last to a seventh-place finish on Saturday and captured the win on Sunday after a two-lap shootout with Brandon Jones. In the first Xfinity Series event at Dover, Briscoe spun on lap 78 while contending for third place, but bounced back to score a top-10 result. Though the No. 98 team was forced to unload their backup Ford Mustang for Sunday’s race at the Monster Mile, Briscoe once again drove from the back of the field to first, leading three times for a race-high 107 laps to earn his sixth win of the season.

•  Briscoe enters Richmond second in the regular-season championship standings, 54 points behind series leader Austin Cindric. However, the 25-year-old racer is already well positioned for the Xfinity Series Playoffs, which starts Sept. 26 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. With three races still remaining in the regular season, Briscoe leads in two important categories – wins (Briscoe has six, next best has five victories) and playoff points (Briscoe has 35, next best has 34). This season will mark Briscoe’s second season of playoff eligibility. He finished fifth in the title race last year, narrowly missing out on advancing to the Championship 4 and competing for the series championship. Nonetheless, the performance earned Briscoe the 2019 rookie-of-the-year title.

•  In three career Xfinity Series starts at Richmond, Briscoe has one top-five and two top-10 finishes with a best result of fifth in last year’s Go Bowling 250.

CHASE BRISCOE, Driver of the No. 98 Go Bowling Ford Mustang:

What are your thoughts heading into Richmond?

“Richmond is the one track I struggle at more than any other to get the balance I’m looking for in the racecar. We’ve obviously had practices there in the past and, truthfully, I feel like I’ve probably tuned myself away from what I needed during those sessions. During practice my car would be pretty good, and then during the race it was totally different. It seemed like when I would try to help one thing, I hurt another. Ideally, the guys have our Go Bowling Ford Mustang ready to unload where we need to be to where I can’t steer us in the wrong direction.”

Does having two races and two chances to get comfortable with the track make you feel more positive about finding success?

“I think it will help to race two days in a row and have the chance to apply to the second day what I learned on the first and get a better grasp of the place. But then again, one race is at night and one is during the day. Every time we’ve been there, I was good during practice during the day, and then at night my car wasn’t handling the best. Hopefully, the day race will play into our hands. Richmond would be the biggest surprise to win, but I hope we show up with some speed and can get it done. Richmond is about as close as it gets to Phoenix, so it’ll be a big weekend for us to also see what we can learn to carry through the playoffs and take to the championship race.”

You’ve talked about how important it has been for the team to have a notebook from last year in terms of preparing for tracks where you’re still learning. Other than looking back on those notes and spending time in the simulator, how else do you prepare for these races?

“At tracks where I feel like I have a lot more to learn, I usually try to talk to a couple of guys before we get there. Usually I go to Kevin Harvick and for this week I’ll probably reach out to Tony (Stewart) because he was always really good at Richmond. In the past, I’ve reached out to Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. about tips to get around there. He was always really good there in the Xfinity car and even in the Cup cars. I try to use all of my resources when we’re set to visit tracks where I struggle.”

With three races to go in the regular season, is the goal to try and get as many playoff points as possible?

“The best thing we can do is just trying to make sure we have a five-point playoff point lead over the ‘22’ (Austin Cindric). More than likely, he’s going to win the regular season championship, but if we can be five or six ahead that puts us tied or one up going into the playoffs. So that’s probably the biggest goal right now is just trying to make sure we can do that. That obviously requires winning stages and races. I felt like we had a good opportunity to do that at Darlington, but it just didn’t work out. We were in the right position though, so we’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing each week and hope that it works out for the best.”

KEVIN HARVICK – 2020 Richmond Race Advance

Kevin Harvick will have a new look for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond (Va.) Raceway.

The No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) will be sponsored by Hunt Brothers Pizza and FIELDS, two longtime supporters of Harvick.

Hunt Brothers Pizza has partnered with Harvick in NASCAR for 11 years and last visited victory lane with him when he won the 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Harvick has also won NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series races with Hunt Brothers Pizza as the primary sponsor at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth and at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, both in 2011. The company also sponsored him in the non-points NASCAR All-Star Race in 2014 and 2015 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Harvick finished second in both races.

For 2019, Hunt Brothers Pizza moved up to the Cup Series for three races and, in 2020, is on Harvick’s car five times, including this week’s race at Richmond and the upcoming AAA Texas 500 on Oct. 25 at Texas.

With more than 7,800 locations in 30 states, Hunt Brothers Pizza is the nation’s largest brand of made-to-order pizza in the convenience store industry. Hunt Brothers Pizza offers original and thin crust pizzas available as a grab-and-go Hunk perfect for today’s on-the-go lifestyle, or as a customizable whole pizza that is an exceptional value with All Toppings No Extra Charge®.

Headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, Hunt Brothers Pizza is family owned and operated with more than 25 years of experience serving great pizza to convenience store shoppers through its store partners. To find a Hunt Brothers Pizza location, download the Hunt Brothers Pizza app by visitingwww.huntbrotherspizza.com/app/

FIELDS has sponsored Harvick in Xfinity Series races in August 2017 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, where he finished sixth, and in June 2018 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, where he scored an eighth-place result. Harvick took FIELDS to victory lane in 2017 at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway in a NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race.

FIELDS, one of the Sports Fields Inc., companies, is the preeminent builder of fields and sports parks in the country. FIELDS is committed to “Building Sports Parks of Distinction.” The fields produced facilitate peak team performance and are constructed using the industry’s best resources and embody the essence of durability, precision, technological innovation, service and quality.

By combining the premium quality of the fields with the best in customer care, FIELDS creates sports parks of distinction that wow teams, coaches and guests.

As both Hunt Brothers Pizza and FIELDS have won with Harvick, they’re now teaming up in hopes the No. 4 Hunt Brothers Pizza/FIELDS Ford Mustang will find victory lane at Richmond.

Harvick heads to the three-quarter-mile oval where he has been stellar over the years. He has three wins, three poles, 15 top-five finishes, 25 top-10s and has led a total of 1,139 laps in his 38 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Richmond. The last time he finished outside the top-15 there was April 2012, and he’s finished in the top-five nine times in the 15 races since.

Even though Harvick is already locked into the Round of 12 of the playoffs thanks to Sunday night’s win at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, he really likes victories and the points they provide, and would love to take two longtime partners to victory lane at Richmond.

 

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Hunt Brothers Pizza / FIELDS Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

 

With your points total and everything, you were pretty much assured of going on to the second round, but you won Darlington. Does this change your outlook, your strategy, even in the slightest?

“We knew we had done a great job in the regular season and had built a buffer, and I think that – just like you saw Rodney (Childers, crew chief) call the race (at Darlington), I think there were several moments where we could have been a lap down and he called the race to win. I think he knows the importance of winning races. He also knows the importance of that cushion that’s sitting there. But the best way up is to have that cushion get bigger, and we were able to do that, and as you go into the next round, that cushion is going to be bigger than it was when we got here. That’s just because of the great spot we’re in that we can continue to be aggressive and make aggressive calls and do aggressive things to try to win. We were fortunate to be in the right spot, but we were fortunate that we were in the right spot because of great pit calls and all the things that were happening on the pit box and in the pit stall.”

At the end of the race at Darlington a young fan tried to hand you the checkered flag and you told him to keep it. What does that mean to you personally, to be able to bring something like that to the fans, especially young fans, knowing that you can’t have your son Keelan at the racetrack?

“Yeah, so I mean, I’m a little biased toward the kids. Seeing that young man standing up there with his 4 hat on and holding that flag, there was no way I was getting out of my car and taking that flag. Hopefully that’s something he can remember, and remember going forward, as he tells his friends and his family, and hopefully everybody remembers that and comes back again. That’s what it’s all about, right? Making sure that people have a great time. And we’re back with fans at the racetrack, and to see those kids back in the grandstands is a lot of fun.”

You broke the tie with Kyle Busch and are all alone at ninth in the all-time wins list. What does that mean to you?

“Yeah, I look at that list and I laugh, just because I think back to all the crazy situations and all the things we’ve been a part of throughout the years and just the highs and the lows. Look, I’ve been fortunate to be around a lot of great people and sit in great racecars, and these last seven years have just been unbelievable at Stewart-Haas Racing, and Rodney and the whole company is just – they put a ton of effort into trying to make sure we go to the racetrack and have a chance to win. From a driver standpoint, it’s a driver’s dream to have (co-owners) Tony (Stewart) and Gene (Haas), and all they want to do is race and win. And to be able to have those assets and have the resources we have with Ford. And so much has changed since I started at Stewart-Haas Racing – no Tony – we switched manufacturers, and there’s been a lot of change. But in the end, it’s all to try to win races and it’s just fun to be able to share that with a group of people who care so much about myself and the things that we do with this car and that company, and everybody is pulling the rope in the same direction, and when that’s happening, when you have great people, it just continues to get better.”

CLINT BOWYER – 2020 Richmond Race Advance

Clint Bowyer has a guaranteed method to ensure he sleeps soundly at night during the Round of 16 portion of the 10-race, 16-driver NASCAR Cup Series playoffs that continue Saturday night at Richmond (Va.) Raceway before concluding the following Saturday night at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

“It’s pretty simple – you win Richmond Saturday night and don’t worry about a thing until the next round,” said Bowyer, who is making his third consecutive and ninth career playoff appearance in 2020. “Anything less and you are going to lay awake a lot of nights.”

A strong run Saturday night is key if Bowyer hopes to advance beyond the Round of 16, which began Sunday night at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

“You don’t want your season’s hopes and dreams coming down to Bristol, where anything can and probably will happen,” Bowyer said. “You want to get your work done this weekend in Richmond. Nobody wants to go to Bristol knowing they have to have a great finish to advance to the next round. I love Bristol, but that race is going to be wild and I’d prefer we be in really good shape before we get there. I’d like to win Richmond Saturday night, then go watch all the other guys sweat it out in Bristol.”

The Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) driver arrives at Richmond 13th in points after finishing 10th in the playoff opener at Darlington. To advance to the second round, which begins in two weeks, Bowyer must be in the top-12 among the 16 playoff drivers after the Richmond and Bristol races. A win at either track means an automatic berth into the next playoff round. He heads to Richmond tied for the final of the 12 transfer spots.

Bowyer has a realistic chance of getting that victory at Richmond and enjoying a pressure-free weekend at Bristol. He has two Cup Series wins, five top-fives and 16 top-10s in 28 starts at the three-quarter-mile Richmond oval. Bowyer also earned a NASCAR Xfinity Series victory there in 2007. Bowyer has earned top-10 finishes in the last four Cup Series races at Richmond.

“Past success doesn’t mean you can just show up and good things happen,” he said. “We have to go there with the mindset that we need to be mistake free and do everything we need to do to run well. I have said, if we can avoid making mistakes, this team can go a lot of rounds in these playoffs.”

This weekend, Bowyer’s No. 14 Mustang will carry the decals of the Ford Performance Racing School, which is based in Tooele, Utah, approximately 30 minutes southwest of Salt Lake City, and also has operations at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Along with high-performance driving instruction, the school conducts tire-training courses for BFGoodrich and Michelin, as well as product-focused experiential driving programs for owners of Ford Performance vehicles at no charge.

Ford Performance Racing School is the only school to wear the Ford oval and offers high performance driving courses to anyone interested, including one-day and two-day programs on the road course and oval at Charlotte. For more information, visit www.FordPerformanceRacingSchool.com

It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to say about as many Fords can be seen at the racing school as in this year’s playoffs. Ford Mustangs comprise half the 16-car field. SHR’s four-Mustang contingent of Bowyer and teammates Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola and Cole Custer lead the way as the only organization to place all of its cars in the playoffs. Last year, then-SHR driver Daniel Suarez fell just four points shy of earning a playoff berth, otherwise this would have marked the third consecutive year SHR placed all four of its drivers in the playoffs.

“I think Ford placing eight Mustangs in the playoffs is just the result of the commitment Ford has to this sport,” Bowyer said. “They love NASCAR. In fact, they love all racing. It takes a lot of desire to have that type of success in our sport and it really pays off. I love having that blue Ford logo on my racecar.”

His Ford oval in victory lane Saturday night at Richmond could make for peaceful nights for Bowyer next week, and that’s just the way he wants it.

 

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Ford Performance Racing School Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

 

Is it an advantage or disadvantage for SHR to have all four cars in the playoffs?

“There’s no question that it’s both. I’m super-proud of everybody, all the men and women at Stewart-Haas Racing. What an accomplishment. All four cars. A group of pretty special people. I’m going to tell you, Stewart-Haas runs as lean as any organization I’ve ever been a part of and arguably as lean as anybody we race against, and certainly as lean as anybody who’s sharing four cars in the playoffs, I can promise you that. I’m proud of that. That means you’ve got the right people put in place and they’re all pulling on the rope in the same direction. That’s how we got here. We cannot lose sight of that but, make no mistake, there’s probably going to be a time within probably this first round you may have to be fighting one of your own for a position to go on to the next round within these playoffs. There are real-life scenarios that are going to be there, as well.”

Do you feel pressure?

“Hell yeah, you feel pressure. Yeah. I’m going to postpone that pressure until I get in that damn car Saturday night. I’m just going to wait for then. I’m not going to go ahead and feel pressure right now. I’ve chosen not to experience pressure today. Saturday, it’s a different day. I will feel the pressure. That’s just the way it is. I can tell you this, there’s nothing that lasts longer than a bad run. I’m bad about it. You ask my wife, she’ll say, ‘God, will you please get back to the racetrack and try to fix whatever this is’ because you come home as a racecar driver and you are super-pissed and not much fun to be around for a couple days after a bad run.”

COLE CUSTER – 2020 Richmond Race Advance

Cole Custer and the No. 41 HaasTooling.com team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) head to Richmond (Va.) Raceway for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400. The event marks Custer’s 31st career Cup Series start at just 21 years of age.

Sunday night at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Custer started 14th and the No. 41 team worked on the handling of his HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang throughout the race and, nearing its end, Custer was happy with his car. He ultimately finished 12th after rallying back from a pit-road speeding penalty.

Richmond is the second event in the 10-race Cup Series playoffs for the 2020 season championship. Custer enters the weekend 14th in playoff points after the Darlington race and is currently three points shy of the 12th-place cutoff position to advance to the next round. Richmond is the first of two consecutive short-track races that will wrap up the Round of 16 in the playoffs, the second coming next week at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

One challenge for Custer is that he hasn’t raced on Richmond’s three-quarter-mile oval in the Cup Series since September 2018. This year’s first Richmond race, originally scheduled for April 19, was moved to another venue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Custer must now make his first Cup Series start at Richmond since 2018 while trying to vie for a Round of 12 playoff spot without any practice or qualifying. The rookie has only been able to use the Ford simulator and study the notes of his SHR teammates for preparation. Richmond is the only playoff venue the Cup Series hasn’t visited this season.

In the Xfinity Series at Richmond, Custer has seven starts over a four-year period. The Ford driver has finished inside the top-15 in all of his starts. He’s won the April 2019 Xfinity Series race there with a 2.639-second margin of victory over Austin Cindric. Additionally, Custer earned a pole award in April 2018 with a speed of 121.332 mph. In total, he has an 8.3 average starting and finishing position in the Xfinity Series at the Virginia track.

So far this season, the Mustang has won 15 races for Ford. Custer and his SHR teammate Kevin Harvick have both earned wins for the Blue Oval this season and have accounted for a total of nine victories. Harvick won three weeks ago at Dover (Del.) International Speedway to give Ford its milestone 700th in the Cup Series, and he won again Sunday night at Darlington. Ford captured its first victory on June 25, 1950. Ford drivers make up 50 percent of this year’s playoff field, with eight drivers representing the Michigan manufacturer.

With Custer’s Cup Series win July 12 at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, he became one of 10 drivers who have won in each of NASCAR’s top three national series, as well as in ARCA and one of NASCAR’s developmental series.

Team co-owner Gene Haas’ newest holding, Haas Tooling, was launched as a way for CNC machinists to purchase high quality cutting tools at great prices. Haas’ cutting tools are sold exclusively online at HaasTooling.com and shipped directly to end users. Beginning July 1, HaasTooling.com products became available nationally. The cutting tools available for purchase at HaasTooling.com are even more important during the current COVID-19 pandemic as CNC machines have become vital to producing personal protective equipment.

SHR scored its lone Richmond win when its former driver Kurt Busch captured the victory in April 2015. Harvick has earned three pole awards for SHR at Richmond with his most recent in April 2019. The championship-winning organization has all four of its entries competing in the playoffs and is the only four-car team to do so in the Cup Series.

Haas Automation, founded by Haas in 1983, is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. The company manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. All Haas products are constructed in the company’s 1.1-million-square-foot manufacturing facility in Oxnard, California, and distributed through a worldwide network of Haas Factory Outlets.

Custer, who had a trio of starts in the Cup Series in 2018, clinched 2020 Rookie of the Year honors in his official rookie season in NASCAR’s most prestigious series. Competing against fellow rookie notables Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick, he was the only rookie to clinch a playoff spot this season.

 

COLE CUSTER, Driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

 

Are you going to look at footage and data from your Xfinity Series win last year at Richmond to try and learn something for this weekend?

“Yeah, that’s every weekend for me. I look at old races and try and talk to Kevin (Harvick) every weekend to find out what he’s looking for. He’s been a huge help this year. All of my teammates have been. It’s been tough, though. You can look at as much film and data as you want, but you’re still missing the experience of actually being out there. You know what you need to work on, but you really don’t learn as much until you’re out there on the track.”

There’s been no practice or qualifying for most of the year, and that is certainly difficult for a rookie like yourself. But how do you balance not having that track time, but also trying to excel?

“That’s part of the challenge. You don’t get to feel out your car on the track. It’s one of those things you have to balance. We of course want to go out there on lap one and run as hard as we can and get track position, but if that ends up putting you in a bad position because you hit the wall or something like that, that’s exactly what you don’t want to do. You’ll probably see two or three guys put themselves in a hole in the playoffs because of something like that, it’s just a matter of not being one of those guys.”

There was a lot of hype this year with the rookie class, and you’re the only one to make it into the playoffs. Have you guys communicated at all about how cool it is to be rookies with each other?

“I think it’s cool and we all get along with each other pretty well. We’ve all grown up racing each other and it’s been fun moving up with them and bringing some excitement back to the rookie class. After the Daytona race, Tyler (Reddick) actually texted me congratulations and to wish me good luck in the playoffs, so that was pretty cool.”

ARIC ALMIROLA – 2020 Richmond Race Advance

Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Hometown Original Heroes Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) in the NASCAR Cup Series, heads to Richmond (Va.) Raceway for Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 holding down the 12th spot in the NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings.

Almirola finished ninth in Sunday night’s playoff opener at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway to earn his second consecutive top-10 at the egg-shaped oval. It was a rollercoaster of a race for Almirola, who fell outside the top-20 before rallying back to a top-10 by the end of the race.

“It wasn’t pretty, but we rallied back to have a decent finish that keeps us in contention to advance to the next round,” said Almirola, who’s tied for the all-important 12th-place cutoff spot with SHR teammate Clint Bowyer with two races to go in the Round of 16. “It’s no different than racing at Vegas last year, where we had a seventh- to 10th-place car. We didn’t get the stage points we needed to build a cushion, but to leave Darlington with a ninth-place finish after the day we had was what we needed heading to Richmond.”

Almirola needs to remain in the top-12 in points to advance to the Round of 12 for the third consecutive season with SHR, which makes running well Saturday night at Richmond and the following Saturday night at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway that much more important.

The Smithfield Ford driver was in the exact same playoff points position last year heading to Richmond – 12th place with 2,033 points. He went on to advance to the round of 12.

Almirola has one top-five at Richmond since joining SHR, but that doesn’t mean he looks at the .75-mile short track as a weak point in his quest to reach the Round of 12.

“I really enjoy Richmond,” he said. “It’s a tough track, but it’s in Smithfield’s backyard and would mean the world to lock ourselves in to the next round there.”

The No. 10 Ford driver enjoyed a career-best regular season with five top-five finishes, 14 top-10s and 286 laps led. In his last 16 races, he has 12 top-10s and all five of his top-fives.

SHR teammate and regular-season points champion Kevin Harvick won Sunday night’s Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington to secure his position in the next playoff round while SHR’s Cole Custer is just three points behind Almirola and the 12th-place cutoff line.

Almirola and his longtime partner Smithfield Foods have collaborated to honor frontline hometown heroes by showcasing a special paint scheme on the No. 10 Ford this weekend. Smithfield looks to honor those who are putting their own health and safety at risk in a selfless act to protect and nourish others around them. The Smithfield “Hometown Original Heroes” program provides the opportunity for fans to share the stories of their own “Hometown Hero.” Be it a nurse, doctor, food worker, public servant or anyone who is on the frontlines each and every day, Smithfield and Almirola want to hear their stories and give.

To nominate a hometown hero, visit www.SmithfieldHometownHeroes.com and submit a one-minute video nominating the “Hometown Hero.” Ten heroes will be chosen to have their stories told and will have their names riding onboard the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang at a race during the NASCAR playoffs this fall. The heroes will also receive a VIP race day experience and full-year supply of Smithfield “Hometown Original” bacon.

Almirola looks to become Smithfield’s “Hometown Original Hero” this weekend by parking the black, white and gold Smithfield Ford in victory lane with a ticket punched to the Round of 12 for the third year in a row.

 

ARIC ALMIROLA, Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

 

Most drivers are saying you’re the dark horse in the 2020 playoffs. How do you feel about that? 

“I don’t really care what everyone else says. I don’t focus on that at all. We’ve been in contention all year and that’s what we plan to continue at Richmond.”

How do you study your playoff rounds, one at a time or all together as a collective round? 

“I’m focused on racing for a win at Richmond and that’s all I have my mind on. It’s one race at a time. I couldn’t even tell you what tracks come next. As soon as the checkered flag waved at Darlington, it’s all about Richmond.”

What kind of challenge does a short track like Richmond bring? 

“I would say Richmond is one of the most challenging racetracks we go to for managing your tires throughout the run. The first 10, 15 or 20 laps of the run can make you feel like Superman roaring through the field, but you will pay a major penalty for that by lap 40. It makes it fun because, when we show up to Richmond, it really is about managing tire fall-off and making sure your car stays consistent throughout the run as the tires fall off.”

What’s it like to race at Richmond? 

“Richmond is an awesome track to race at. It’s Saturday-night racing at its finest. Beating and banging, and the track has very little grip and the tires wear out, so it’s a really fun racetrack. You can see the sparks flying, and having the glow of the brake rotors and everything lit up is neat. It’s also pretty close to Smithfield, Virginia, so it’s a hometown race for Smithfield. It’s just a lot of fun to go there and race.”

KEVIN HARVICK – 2020 Darlington Throwback Race Report

Event: Cook Out Southern 500 (Round 27 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway (1.366-mile oval)
Format: 367 laps, broken into three stages (115 laps/115 laps/137 laps)
Start/Finish: 8th/1st (Running, completed 367 of 367 laps)
Point Standing: (1st with 2,106 points, advances to Round of 12 by virtue of win)

Race Winner: Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Martin Truex Jr. of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Martin Truex Jr. of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-115):

● Harvick started eighth and finished 10th and earned one bonus point.
● Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Beer Throwback Ford Mustang, said his car was loose and pitted on lap 27 for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment. Was in sixth-place and exited pit lane in fifth.
● On lap 73, Harvick pitted for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment to tighten the car up as it was very loose.
● Harvick pitted on lap 84 for four tires, fuel and a chassis and tire pressure adjustment. Said car was still too loose.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 116-230):

● Harvick started eighth and finished third and earned eight bonus points.
● Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Beer Throwback Ford Mustang pitted on lap 118 for four tires, fuel and a major chassis adjustment. Said car was still too loose.
● On lap 157, Harvick pitted for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. The crew made an adjustment to the left front as Harvick said the car was still too loose. Was in ninth-place.
● Harvick pitted on lap 183 for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. He was leading, but said the car was better, but still too loose.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 231-367):

● Harvick started third and finished first.
● On lap 232, Harvick pitted for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. The handling was improving.
● Harvick pitted on lap 247 for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. Said cars handling was improving even more.
● On lap 287, Harvick pitted for four tires, fuel and a tire and chassis adjustment. He was fourth and said the car was still a tick loose.
● Harvick was in second place when he pitted on lap 232 for four tires, fuel and a tire pressure adjustment. Came in second and left in second.
● He was in third place with 15 laps to go when Chase Elliott and Martin Truex Jr., were battling for the lead and both cars got into the outside SAFER Barrier in turn one. Both cars were damaged and Harvick was able to pass each driver and win his second Southern 500.

Notes:

●  Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Austin Dillon was .343 of a second.
●  There were seven caution periods for a total of 34 laps.
●  Twenty of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
●  Harvick earned his series-leading eighth victory of the season and his third victory in 26 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington.
●  Harvick’s eight wins ties his own mark for the most victories in a single season. He won eight races in 2018.
●  This was Harvick’s third straight top-three at Darlington. He has not finished outside the top-10 at Darlington since a 16th-place drive in May 2012.
●  Harvick has nine top-fives in the last 10 races at Darlington.
●  Since joining SHR in 2014, Harvick has only one finish outside the top-five at Darlington – ninth in the 2017 Southern 500.
●  Harvick’s 11 top-fives and 15 top-10s at Darlington are the most among active drivers.
●  Harvick led three times for 32 laps to increase his laps-led total at Darlington to 782, the most among active drivers.
●  Harvick has now led 10,757 laps since joining SHR in 2014. He has led 15,183 laps in his entire NASCAR Cup Series career.
●  Harvick has led 1,149 laps in the 27 races held this season. He is the only driver to hit the 1,000 laps led mark this year. Next best is Denny Hamlin with 790 laps led.
●  Harvick’s victory in the Cook Out Southern 500 marked the 86th overall win for SHR. It was the organization’s 64th points-paying NASCAR Cup Series victory, its ninth of the season and its third at Darlington.
●  SHR scored both of its previous Darlington wins with Harvick. He won the 2014 Southern 500 in his first season with SHR and earned a second win at the “Track Too Tough To Tame” on May 17 when NASCAR returned to racing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
●  This was SHR’s 28th NASCAR Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when former driver Kurt Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.
●  Harvick has now won 22 NASCAR Cup Series races with Ford, which makes him one of only 13 drivers to win 20 or more races with the manufacturer. He is just one win away from tying Rusty Wallace, Carl Edwards and Joey Logano for 10th all time.
●  This was Ford’s series-leading 15th NASCAR Cup Series win of the season and its 701st all-time Cup Series victory.
●  This was Harvick’s 57th career NASCAR Cup Series win. He is now ninth on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series win list after passing Kyle Busch, who has 56 wins. Next on the all-time win list is NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt with 76 victories.
●  This was Harvick’s 34th NASCAR Cup Series victory since joining SHR in 2014.

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Beer Throwback Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Was this one of those nights you didn’t have the best car and showed what this team is made of?

“First thing I want to say is welcome back, fans. This interview is a hell of a lot more fun with you guys up there. I just want to say thank you to everybody from NASCAR, all of you fans here in South Carolina. I’ve got to thank Busch Beer, Mobil 1, Hunt Brothers Pizza, Jimmy John’s, Ford Mustang, everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing. We just wound up fighting all night long. This Busch Beer Ford Mustang wasn’t where we wanted it to be, but the leaders got tangled up there and the next thing you know we were racing for the win.”

How big is this win for the 4 team?

“Anytime you can win the Southern 500 is a good day. This is one of the most prestigious races in our sport and this is one the most prestigious racetracks in our sport, so anytime you can win at Darlington it’s a big deal, but, man, Southern 500!”

What did you see with Truex and Elliott?

“Obviously, those guys had trouble. I didn’t see what happened. I just heard my spotter tell me that something had happened. I’ve just got to thank everybody on our Busch Beer Ford Mustang. They did a heck of a job tonight just keeping us in the game. Our car wasn’t very good, but we just kept fighting and kept ourselves up in the front with some great pit strategy and were able to stay up there and fight and wound up in the right spot.”

You short pitted several times. Was that what you had to do?

“We kept having a lot of trouble with the right-rear tire cording.  The car was really loose all night long for whatever reason and would cord the right-rear tire, so I think that was probably about as far as they felt like we were comfortable of going and wound up being the right strategy in the end.”

Playoff Standings:

1.      Kevin Harvick (2,106 points) 1 win
2.      Denny Hamlin (2,087 points) +54 points
3.      Joey Logano (2,060 points) +27 points
4.      Brad Keselowski (2,055 points) +22 points
5.      Alex Bowman (2,052 points) +19 points
6.      Martin Truex Jr. (2,049 points) +16 points
7.      Chase Elliott (2,045 points) +12 points
8.      Austin Dillon (2,043 points) +10 points
9.      William Byron (2,042 points) +9 points
10.    Kyle Busch (2,040 points) +7 points
11.    Kurt Busch (2,037 points) +4 points
12.    Aric Almirola (2,033 points) +0 points
13.    Clint Bowyer (2,033 points) -0 points
14.    Cole Custer (2,030 points) -3 points
15.    Matt DiBenedetto (2,016 points) -17 points
16.    Ryan Blaney (2,016 points) -17 points

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Federated Auto Parts 400 on Saturday, Sept. 12 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway. It is the second race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts and it starts at 7:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

COLE CUSTER – 2020 Darlington Throwback Race Report

Event: Cook Out Southern 500 (Round 27 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway (1.366-mile oval)
Format: 367 laps, broken into three stages (115 laps/115 laps/137 laps)
Start/Finish: 14th/12th (Running, completed 367 of 367 laps)
Point Standing: 14th with 2,030 points, 3 points below top-12 cutoff

Race Winner: Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-115):             

● Cole Custer started 14th and finished 17th.
● Custer pitted during the lap-25 competition caution from 17th after reporting his biggest issue was in turn 3. He restarted 17th.
● On lap 57 the HaasTooling.com driver reported his Mustang was loose into turn 3 and he slipped back to 21st.
● Custer pitted from 20th under green on lap 71 for fuel, four tires and adjustments to help with his tight condition.
● Under caution on lap 83 the 21-year-old driver pitted from 18th for adjustments to help loosen his Mustang up. He restarted 19th.
● During the closing laps of the stage, Custer worked his way up to 17th to finish the stage. The California native pitted for fuel, four tires and adjustments during the break.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 116-230):

● Custer started in 18th and finished 24th.
● On lap 172, Custer made a scheduled green-flag pit stop from the top-20 after reporting his Mustang remained tight.
● Under caution on lap 182, Custer pitted from 20th for service and was relegated to restart at the rear of the field after incurring a pit road speeding penalty.
● By lap 192 Custer was up to 25th.
● The rookie driver ended the stage 24th and pitted for service during the stage break.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 231-367):

● Custer started 20th, finished 12th.
● On lap 239 Custer was in the 16th position.
● Under caution on lap 246, Custer pitted from 16th. He restarted 15th on lap 251.
● On lap 254 the Ford driver was in the 11th spot.
● Custer made a scheduled green-flag pit stop on lap 290 from the top-15 and reported he was looking for more long-run speed.
● On lap 310 Custer was in the 12th position and the next caution was displayed on lap 320 with Custer in 13th.
● Custer restarted 14th with 41 laps to go and was up to 12th on lap 333, where he ultimately finished.

Notes:

● Custer earned his ninth top-15 of the season and his first top-15 in three career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington.
● Custer’s 12th-place result bettered his previous best finish at Darlington – 22nd, earned in the series’ last race at the track on May 20.
● Custer was the highest finishing NASCAR Cup Series rookie.
● Kevin Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Austin Dillon was .343 of a second.
● There were seven caution periods for a total of 34 laps.
● Twenty of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● Harvick’s victory in the Cook Out Southern 500 marked the 86th overall win for SHR. It was the organization’s 64th points-paying NASCAR Cup Series victory, its ninth of the season and its third at Darlington.
● This was SHR’s 28th NASCAR Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when former driver Kurt Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.
● This was Ford’s series-leading 15th NASCAR Cup Series win of the season and its 701st all-time Cup Series victory.
● This was Ford’s milestone 30th NASCAR Cup Series victory at Darlington. Ford’s first Darlington win came in the 1956 Southern 500 with Curtis Turner.

Playoff Standings (with two races to go before Round of 12):

1.      Kevin Harvick (2,106 points) 1 win
2.      Denny Hamlin (2,087 points) +54 points
3.      Joey Logano (2,060 points) +27 points
4.      Brad Keselowski (2,055 points) +22 points
5.      Alex Bowman (2,052 points) +19 points
6.      Martin Truex Jr. (2,049 points) +16 points
7.      Chase Elliott (2,045 points) +12 points
8.      Austin Dillon (2,043 points) +10 points
9.      William Byron (2,042 points) +9 points
10.    Kyle Busch (2,040 points) +7 points
11.    Kurt Busch (2,037 points) +4 points
12.    Aric Almirola (2,033 points) +0 points
13.    Clint Bowyer (2,033 points) -0 points
14.    Cole Custer (2,030 points) -3 points
15.    Matt DiBenedetto (2,016 points) -17 points
16.    Ryan Blaney (2,016 points) -17 points

Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

“Tonight definitely wasn’t a pretty race, but my team stuck it out. It was a persevering night. We fought hard all night to keep ourselves in the game. We wanted to run better but Darlington definitely hasn’t been our strong suit, but we were able to get a 12th-place result.”

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Federated Auto Parts 400 on Saturday, Sept. 12 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway. It is the second race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts and it starts at 7:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

CLINT BOWYER – 2020 Darlington Throwback Race Report

Event: Cook Out Southern 500 (Round 27 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway (1.366-mile oval)
Format: 367 laps, broken into three stages (115 laps/115 laps/137 laps)
Start/Finish: 9th/10th (Running, completed 367 of 367 laps)
Point Standing: 13th with 2,033 points (0 points below top-12 cutoff)

Race Winner:      Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:  Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner:  Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-115):

● Clint Bowyer started ninth and finished 12th.
● The No. 14 PEAK Antifreeze Throwback Ford Mustang raced in tenth at the lap-25 competition caution.
● Bowyer raced as far back as 12th and as high as eighth during the stage that included pit stops on laps 72 and 82.
● Bowyer and crew worked throughout the stage to improve their car’s handling.
● During the stage break, Bowyer told the crew his car did not like running in traffic and was much faster in clean air.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 116-230):

● Bowyer started 13th and finished ninth to earn two bonus points.
● The No. 14 crew continued to work on the car’s handling making several adjustments during pit stops.
● The PEAK Antifreeze Throwback Ford Mustang appeared fastest on long runs.
● Bowyer moved into ninth at the lap-185 mark and held the position for the remainder of the stage.
● Bowyer and another car made contact on pit road during the stage break, but neither suffered major damage.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 231-367):

● Bowyer started 11th and finished 10th.
● The No. 14 pitted during a caution with 140 to go and vaulted from 10th to seventh.
● Bowyer grabbed sixth-place on the restart with 115 laps to go – his highest running position of the race.
● Bowyer reported he had a right rear tire coming apart when he pitted from fifth with 66 to go.
● The PEAK Antifreeze Throwback Ford Mustang climbed back to 14th on the new tires and appeared headed higher, but a debris caution with 45 to go stopped his progress and hurt his chances to battle for victory.
● Bowyer moved from 12th to 10th in the final 40 laps of the race.

Notes:

● Bowyer earned his eighth top-10 of the season and his third top-10 in 17 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington.
● Bowyer raced a special PEAK Antifreeze Throwback paint scheme on his No. 14 Sunday celebrating PEAK’s first NASCAR victory when Kyle Petty dominated the 1990 race at Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway.
● Bowyer has scored the sixth most points of all drivers in the last 10 races.
● Kevin Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Austin Dillon was .343 of a second.
● There were seven caution periods for a total of 34 laps.
● Twenty of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 PEAK Antifreeze Throwback Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

“We were really hurt by the debris caution with about 40 to go. That shook up the race pretty good. We were looking like a sure single digit finish there. We battled a ton of things tonight so to leave with a top-10 is pretty good. My guys worked hard tonight and we had some really good pit stops. We had a lot of fun this week with Kyle Petty and the PEAK folks and all the Throwback activities. I’m ready for Richmond.”

Playoff Standings (with two races to go before Round of 12):

1.       Kevin Harvick (2,106 points) 1 win
2.       Denny Hamlin (2,087 points) +54 points
3.       Joey Logano (2,060 points) +27 points
4.       Brad Keselowski (2,055 points) +22 points
5.       Alex Bowman (2,052 points) +19 points
6.       Martin Truex Jr. (2,049 points) +16 points
7.       Chase Elliott (2,045 points) +12 points
8.       Austin Dillon (2,043 points) +10 points
9.       William Byron (2,042 points) +9 points
10.     Kyle Busch (2,040 points) +7 points
11.     Kurt Busch (2,037 points) +4 points
12.     Aric Almirola (2,033 points) +0 points
13.    Clint Bowyer (2,033 points) -0 points
14.     Cole Custer (2,030 points) -3 points
15.     Matt DiBenedetto (2,016 points) -17 points
16.     Ryan Blaney (2,016 points) -17 points

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Federated Auto Parts 400 on Saturday, Sept. 12 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway. It is the second race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts and it starts at 7:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

ARIC ALMIROLA – 2020 Darlington Throwback Race Report

Event: Cook Out Southern 500 (Round 27 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway (1.366-mile oval)
Format: 367 laps, broken into three stages (115 laps/115 laps/137 laps)
Start/Finish: 10th/9th (Running, completed 367 of 367 laps)
Point Standing: 12th with 2,033 points (0 points ahead of top-12 cutoff)

Race Winner: Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-115):

●  Aric Almirola started 10th and finished 18th.
●  The Go Bowling Ford driver raced up to seventh early in the stage.
●  He fell back when he began to note loose-handling conditions.
●  Almirola pitted on lap 82 under caution for four tires, fuel, adjustments and light damage repair due contact with the No. 2 car.
●  He brought the Go Bowling Ford to the pits at the end of the stage for four tires, fuel and more adjustments.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 116-230):

●  Almirola started 20th and finished 11th.
●  Almirola raced the Go Bowling Ford back to the top-15 on lap 151.
●  He pitted under green on lap 171 for four fresh tires, fuel and adjustments.
●  He came off pit road 18th before another caution was called on lap 180.
●  Almirola raced just outside the top-10 before the stage concluded.
●  He brought the No. 10 Ford to the pits at the end of the stage for four fresh tires, fuel and air pressure adjustments.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 231-367):

●  Almirola started 12th and finished ninth.
●  Almirola pit under caution on lap 247 for four tires and fuel and advanced back to the top-10.
●  The Go Bowling Ford driver was scored ninth by lap 284.
●  He pitted under green-flag conditions on lap 288 for four tires and fuel. He was scored fifth when pit stops cycled through.
●  Almirola pitted on lap 321 under caution for four tires and fuel to restart seventh.
●  Almirola chose the bottom lane on the restart and raced inside the top-10 for the remainder of the race.

Notes:

●  Almirola earned his 15th top-10 of the season and his second top-10 in 11 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington.
●  Since joining SHR in 2018, Almirola only has one finish outside the top-15 at Darlington.
●  This was Almirola’s second straight top-10 at Darlington. He finished seventh in the series’ previous visit to the track on May 20.
●  Kevin Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Austin Dillon was .343 of a second.
●  This was SHR’s 28th NASCAR Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when former driver Kurt Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.
●  There were seven caution periods for a total of 34 laps.
●  Twenty of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Go Bowling Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

“It wasn’t pretty, but we kept fighting all night. We didn’t get the stage points we would have wanted, but we fought hard to salvage a top-10 finish from the day. It’s great to see Kevin (Harvick) bring a win home for the organization, so congrats to him. I’ve got my eyes set on Richmond now.”

Playoff Standings (with two races to go before Round of 12):

1.     Kevin Harvick (2,106 points) 1 win
2.     Denny Hamlin (2,087 points) +54 points
3.     Joey Logano (2,060 points) +27 points
4.     Brad Keselowski (2,055 points) +22 points
5.     Alex Bowman (2,052 points) +19 points
6.     Martin Truex Jr. (2,049 points) +16 points
7.     Chase Elliott (2,045 points) +12 points
8.     Austin Dillon (2,043 points) +10 points
9.     William Byron (2,042 points) +9 points
10.   Kye Busch (2,040 points) +7 points
11.   Kurt Busch (2,037 points) +4 points
12.   Aric Almirola (2,033 points) +0 points
13.   Clint Bowyer (2,033 points) -0 points
14.   Cole Custer (2,030 points) -3 points
15.   Matt DiBenedetto (2,016 points) -17 points
16.   Ryan Blaney (2,016 points) -17 points

Next Up: 

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Federated Auto Parts 400 on Saturday, Sept. 12 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway. It is the second race in the 10-race NASCAR Playoffs starts and it starts at 7:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.