Category: Pre-Race Reports

Aric Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) head to Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth for the 34th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race this season. The event also marks the second race in the Round of 8 in the 2018 Cup Series playoffs. Almirola is coming off of an 11th-place finish Sunday at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.

The entire four-car SHR contingent remains in the hunt for the winner-take-all Championship 4 season finale Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway with only this weekend’s event at Texas and next weekend’s race at ISM Raceway near Phoenix left to try and qualify. The two-time championship-winning SHR organization, which makes up 50 percent of the remaining playoff field, is the first since Joe Gibbs Racing in 2016 to have all of its entries reach victory lane. Almirola currently ranks eighth in the playoff standings with 4,033 points, 25 behind the final cutoff spot for the Championship 4. A win this weekend or next would automatically lock him into the Championship 4.

The 34-year-old Almirola’s trip to Texas earlier this season resulted in an accident just past the halfway point in the race. Before this year’s spring race, Almirola had completed all of his previous starts at Texas. Almirola has one Cup Series top-10 there with an average starting position of 19.9 and an average finishing position of 20.6 in 15 starts.

Almirola and his No. 10 Ford Fusion team are hoping a special paint scheme featuring Smithfield’s Spiral Sliced Ham product will bring good luck this weekend. With the holiday season just around the corner, Smithfield is promoting its perfectly cooked, spiral sliced ham as an ideal addition to most every kind of holiday feast to make family and friends feel special, and by making holiday cooking a breeze, as well as providing equally flavorful leftover dishes. Fans can visit Smithfield.com/HolidayHub, for information on how to make every holiday soiree a breeze, as well as foolproof tips and simple recipes that are sure to wow holiday guests with flavor-filled dishes for all the celebrations the season brings.

Almirola and his team are also hoping their recent success at tracks like the 1.5-mile Texas oval – the bread and butter of the Cup Series schedule – will continue to yield positive results this weekend. In his last 10 starts at 1.5 mile tracks, Almirola has five top-10 finishes and has led 70 laps with an average starting position of 12.2 and an average finish of 14.4.

On Oct. 14, the Tampa native piloted a special bacon-themed Smithfield Ford Fusion to victory lane at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The unique paint scheme coincided with Smithfield’s Bacon for Life promotion. Yes, it’s possible to win bacon for life. The sweepstakes runs until Dec. 31, and fans can enter by finding specially marked packages of Smithfield bacon in stores, then visiting Smithfield.com/BaconForLife and entering the unique code provided in the package. More than 1,000 runners-up will be awarded select bacon merchandise.

Texas is the 31st points-paying event during which the Smithfield livery has adorned Almirola’s No. 10 Ford Fusion. Smithfield, a brand of Smithfield Foods, which is based approximately five hours northeast of SHR headquarters in Smithfield, Virginia, is in its seventh season with Almirola and its first with SHR. Founded in 1936, Smithfield is a leading provider of high-quality pork products, with a vast product portfolio including smoked meats, hams, bacon, sausage, ribs, and a wide variety of fresh pork cuts.

Through 33 races this season, Almirola has amassed one win with an average start of 16.0 and an average finish of 13.3 with three top-five finishes and 14 top-10s. He’s also led 181 laps this season, already a career best with four races remaining.

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

What is the most difficult thing to get right or figure out at Texas Motor Speedway?

“I think the most difficult thing at Texas now that it’s repaved and they changed the banking in turns one and two is just the speed that you carry through the banked corner of turns three and four, and then you have to get slowed down for the flat turns one and two. That has made it very challenging. Then, the exit of turn two is very flat, so you’re carrying some speed there and the car just doesn’t have a lot of grip because there isn’t any banking.”

Do you think we’ll see some different strategies employed by the playoff teams in these final rounds, even if they’re at the end of a stage?

“I think there will be varying strategies, but it really is all dependent on when cautions come out and different things of that nature. But I think you will see guys who are maybe off on their setup and not performing the way they need to. They will maybe try and stretch their fuel run and hope for a caution, different strategies like that. I think desperation will start to set in and you’ll try and figure out any way you can to try and make it to Homestead.”

SHR has four teams in this Round of 8. What is an advantage, and what is a disadvantage with that scenario?

“I think the advantage of having all four cars in the Round of 8 is that everybody is still fully vested. There isn’t a team that’s checked out and just like, ‘Alright, let’s just get through the end of the year and get to the offseason.’ Everybody’s adrenaline it high and they’re still putting long hours in at the shop and shooting for excellence every week. I feel like that elevates everybody else around you and, when you have that in the four walls around you at Stewart-Haas Racing, it keeps the attention to detail very, very high on all fronts. I don’t think there is a disadvantage. I think it’s purely upside to having all four cars still in the playoffs, especially for the organization. As an organization, when you set out to build your team with the staff, the drivers and all of those things, you do it with every intention of having the four best. Currently, we have four of the eight cars in and now we have to figure out how to get as many as possible in the Championship 4 at Homestead.”

Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) are hungry. They have been the leading contenders since they formed prior to the start of the 2014 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season and this year has been no exception as they have devoured seven points-paying wins, 20 top-five finishes, 26 top-10s and 1,682 laps led – all series bests this season.

The Mobil 1 squad is even hungrier this week as it heads to Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth for Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 and the penultimate chance to race their way into the Championship 4 of the 2018 Cup Series playoffs.

Harvick is returning as the defending race winner after ending his career-long Texas drought last November in his 30th Cup Series start at the 1.5-mile oval, clearing his mind to contend for the win again this year. Harvick won in dominating fashion on the final laps a year ago this weekend, passing Martin Truex Jr. to secure his spot in the 2017 Championship 4 – a performance he would like to repeat Sunday. And, with the iconic red, white and blue colors of Mobil 1 emblazoned across Harvick’s hood, he and his team should believe he can achieve nothing less.

Mobil 1 was front and center on the No. 4 machine all the way to the checkered flag at Texas last year, and it’s back again for the 2018 edition as the team attempts to recreate the victory scenario securing its spot at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway.

Harvick and the No. 4 team expect to benefit from SHR’s technology partnership with Mobil 1, which is a unique combination of experience, expertise and innovative thinking that strives to consistently deliver performance-enhancing results on the track.

Mobil 1 works to reduce engine temperatures and to increase engine efficiency. The products allow the No. 4 Ford to reduce rolling resistance, which contributes to increased acceleration on restarts on the way to reaching top speed. Mobil 1 continues to perform rigorous testing with the SHR teams to improve on-track performance, including the reduction of frictional loss in the engines to maximize fuel mileage, increase horsepower and turn more rpm.

The Mobil 1 products reduce friction in the suspension components, as well, providing maximum tire grip and helping to reduce steering compliance to give precision control and improved handling for Harvick behind the wheel.

Mobil 1 provides the products to make the No. 4 Ford operate more efficiently and the proof is in the results. In the last nine races at Texas Motor Speedway since Harvick and the No. 4 team joined forces, they have scored a series-best 346 points, six top-five finishes and eight top-10s. They also have record a win, Busch Pole and 313 laps led and an average finish of eighth.

Joey Logano of Team Penske already punched his ticket to the Championship 4 at Homestead, after securing a win last Sunday at Martinsville. Entering the AAA 500, Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing holds a 46-point advantage, while Martin Truex Jr. and Harvick each hold a 25-point advantage over fifth-place driver and SHR teammate Kurt Busch for the final transfer spot.

A win this weekend at Texas would secure Harvick’s position in the winner-take-all, Championship 4 round at Homestead-Miami Speedway and give him a shot at his second Cup Series championship – and Harvick is hungry for that opportunity.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

The first playoff race was won by Joey Logano, so now the ‘Big Three’ are the final three in points ahead of the cutoff position. What does that do to the dynamic moving forward?

“There’s a lot of respect amongst the three teams, but we all want to beat each other. Ultimately, that’s why we’re here. We want to win and I feel like that same passion lives in those garage stalls next to us and they like you, but they want to beat you. And a lot of times, you do whatever you have to do for your team to go out and do that and that’s what makes it fun. But there’s also a lot of respect there. In the end, we all want to beat each other, but it has been a lot of fun racing with those guys.”

The playoffs are made for clutch moments. What does it mean to be clutch and what moment do you think defines that.

“Clutch moments – there’s nothing like them. It’s one thing to dominate a race all day and win – that’s great. But, making a last-lap pass, an end-of-the-race pass or winning on a day when you’re not supposed to, there is just no better feeling than getting out of the car and looking at those guys. Having the rest of the field asking how was he able to win today. Those are the types of moments that I love to be a part of. We’ve been fortunate to experience a lot of those. That’s the adrenaline rush that comes with what we do. There is no better feeling than those particular moments.”

Thinking of the month of March from a foregone time in Indiana, it is Regional Week.

If one notices the term “regional,” think back to the old Indiana High School basketball championship, which was contested in a single classification for all schools until 1997. It took four rounds to get the final four – or state championship – weekend. The format went sectional, regional, semi-state and final four.

The “sectionals” were last week at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway and Kurt Busch finished an impressive sixth. There are three weeks left, so this week’s AAA Texas 500 can be considered regional week. Pre-1997, teams in Indiana had to win two games in one day at the regional, semi-state and state finals. And the 16 regional sites were massive events at some of the largest high school gymnasiums in the world. Facilities like the one at East Chicago, which held 8,926 people, or Anderson at 8,996, Washington at 7,090, Michigan City at 7,304 and Seymour at 8,110.

One particular regional was always held in the largest gym in the world – New Castle Fieldhouse. It was built in 1959 and can seat 9,325. So New Castle would always host the sectionals and regionals, which always gave its team a great home court advantage.

Busch, driver of the No. 41 State Water Heaters Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), is from Las Vegas but is looking for a little “home court” advantage in this week’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Round of 8 playoff race at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Busch has three poles, one win, three top-five finishes and 18 top-10s at the 1.5-mile oval. Additionally, the 40-year-old driver has led 335 laps, has an average starting position of 13.7, an average finish of 14.8, and has completed 98.5 percent – 10,179 of 10,337 – of the laps he’s contested there.

And Busch and his car have a bit of a different look this week as State Water Heaters is his sponsor on the No. 41 Ford Fusion.

In 1946, State Water Heaters was founded by Herbert Lindahl as a small entrepreneurial company producing coal- and wood-burning stoves in a garage in Nashville, Tennessee. In the years that followed, State expanded and became a leader in the water-heating industry through steadfast commitments to seeking new materials, new technology and innovative engineering techniques.

This weekend, the first 30,000 fans to arrive at Texas Motor Speedway Sunday will receive at Kurt Busch State Water Heaters bobblehead.

If Busch is to score a victory, he’ll bobble all the way to victory lane – and to Homestead-Miami Speedway as part of the Final Four, or as it is known in racing circles, the Championship 4.

KURT BUSCH, Driver of the No. 41 State Water Heaters Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Talk about how challenging Texas Motor Speedway is. You still hold the track record you set last November.

“It was an incredible qualifying run last year and it set a track record. The feel of the tire and the asphalt were better in the fall than the spring. And, what I saw last year during the playoff race at Texas was a textbook pass for the lead with Kevin Harvick passing (Martin) Truex (Jr.) going into turn one. He was able to cut underneath him in turn two. Then you get that run through the fast sections between turns three and four. Texas Motor Speedway has a very unique layout with the speed differences between (turns) three and four and one and two.” 

Talk about your record-setting lap last year at Texas.

“(Turns) three and four are an incredible sensation. Once the car goes into the banking, it travels. The suspension collapses in the car and it gets lower to the ground and picks up speed because you are lower to the ground and have less drag. It’s a sensation that is hard to describe. When you have that grip level in the car, it gives you the feeling that you can just put it down to the floor and there won’t be any consequences. Turns one and two are where I think the lap times come from – if you can get it to hook and stay right on the bottom because that end of the track is a lot flatter. You have to back out of the gas all the way. Then, in three and four, you can hold it wide open. Both ends of the track are very different. It is a cool sensation going through three and four almost holding it wide open.”

Overall thoughts heading to Texas this week?  

“Texas is a good track for us and a good market. I always enjoy coming out to Texas. Hopefully, the weather will look perfect for this weekend. It’s a great track and a big weekend for us as we have State Water Heaters on our car. They are a great partner. And Eddie Gossage (president of Texas Motor Speedway) and State Waters Heaters have worked together to give out 30,000 bobbleheads of me, as well. It’s going to be a fun weekend.”

Clint Bowyer has a strategy for both of the major events in his life this week.

Before he drives the No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Mobil Delvac 1 Ford in the Monster Energy Cup Series 500-mile race Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, he and wife Lorra will make sure son Cash, 4, and daughter Presley, 1, enjoy Halloween Wednesday night near their Mocksville, North Carolina home.

“It’s a big week at our house,” Bowyer said with a laugh. “Halloween is all about having fun with your kids and trying to get more candy than the next guy. It is about the competition. Leave it to a racer to make Halloween a competition, too.”

After the sugar high wears off, it’s off to Texas for the second of three Round of 8 playoff races, where the stakes couldn’t be much higher. He’ll need to finish well among the eight playoff drivers at Texas Sunday in order to stay in the hunt for one of the four transfer positions to be determined next weekend at ISM Raceway near Phoenix. The top four in points will advance to the winner-take-all season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Bowyer arrives at the 1.5-mile Texas track after qualifying second and finishing 21st at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway last Sunday. The finish left Bowyer seventh in the standings, 42 points outside the fourth and final transfer position. Now he turns his attention to Texas, where he qualified third and ran as high as fourth in the April race before a late-race incident left him with a ninth-place finish. In 25 career races at Texas, he owns three top-five finishes and 11 top-10s.

“We know what we have to do in Texas,” Bowyer said. “We dug ourselves a hole at Martinsville and we’ll have to climb out of it. Texas is a tough, tough track. The racetrack, since the repave, is not so much fun but it is a challenge. Within those challenges, you have to be open-minded and excited about that challenge and ready to attack it. You definitely have to attack it. It is a track that the grip level is through the roof until it’s not. It is very tricky to get ahold of.”

Bowyer’s No. 14 Ford will carry the Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 Delvac paint scheme this weekend in Texas.

Rush Truck Centers has been the primary partner on the No. 14 team since Bowyer arrived at SHR in 2017 and has been with the organization since 2010. The San Antonio, Texas-based company has used Bowyer and the team to appeal to NASCAR fans as one way to recruit the technicians it needs to operate the largest network of commercial truck and bus dealerships in the country, with locations in 22 states. According to Rush Truck Centers, the trucking industry is expected to need 200,000 diesel technicians over the next 10 years to keep up with maintenance demands.

Mobil 1 plays an integral role in SHR’s success. Mobil 1’s lubricant technology helps to reduce frictional loss in his Ford engines to maximize fuel mileage, increase horsepower and turn more rpm, providing an advantage over his competitors. Mobil 1 also helps reduce friction in suspension components, providing maximum tire grip as well as helping to reduce steering compliance to give its teams an edge behind the wheel. Not only does Mobil 1 help improve the on-track efficiency of SHR, but the on-track testing helps lead to new lubricant technology developments such as Mobil 1 Annual Protection, which allows drivers to travel up to 20,000 miles, or one full year, between oil changes. In its 16th consecutive season as the “Official Motor Oil of NASCAR,” Mobil 1 is used by more than 50 percent of teams throughout NASCAR’s top three series. Trusted by many of the world’s leading heavy-duty original equipment manufacturers, Mobil Delvac commercial vehicle lubricants are used across a broad range of industries

Bowyer is part of a four-Ford SHR contingent that put all four of its drivers in the Round of 8 – the only team to do so in 2018. SHR owns 11 victories and each of its four drivers has visited victory lane in 2018. Bowyer hopes he can add to those numbers Sunday at Texas.

A victory in the Lone Star state will be the best Trick or Treat week ever in the Bowyer household.

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 Delvac Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What is it like to be part of all four SHR cars in the Round of 8?

“A total team effort across the board is the reason you have all four cars in the Round of 8. We have half of the battle. I think that, because of the willingness to cooperate with one another from a driver standpoint and the willingness to work with one another from the crew chiefs, engineering and everything involved, the teamwork is what makes the dream work. I think that is a quote somewhere. The manufacturer at Ford, everything, it is the total package right now. It is a ton of fun to be on a team like that, an organization like that, with teammates like I have. You come every week and we have just as good a shot as anybody. Our cars are capable of getting the job done every single weekend no matter the conditions or what track we are at or anything in-between. I am very proud of that. You roll into the shop on Tuesday and the first thing I do, the goofball I am, is grab the receptionist intercom and thank everybody and tell them what a good job they are doing and how much fun it is to drive their cars. It really is an honor to be able to drive for an organization like this with the effort that is going on.”

What do you think of Texas?

“I always like going to Texas. It is a lot of fun. Hardest thing there is balancing a little fun and your job. Everything is more fun in Texas.”

Event:               O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 (Round 31 of 33)
Date:                Nov. 3, 2018
Location:          Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth
Layout:             1.5-mile oval

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

• The O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 is the second race of the second round of the 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series playoffs. The playoffs began with 12 eligible drivers and are divided into three rounds with the first two rounds consisting of three races apiece, followed by a final, single-race round at the Homestead-Miami Speedway season finale. Four drivers are eliminated after each of the first two rounds to ultimately establish four finalists at Homestead. Drivers automatically qualify for the next round with a win in the current round with the remaining spots determined by the point standings. At Homestead, the top-finishing driver among the four finalists wins the championship.
• Custer led the 2017 Xfinity Series with 422 points at 1.5-mile tracks after winning the season finale at Homestead by 15.405 seconds and winning Stages 1 and 2.
• Earlier this year at Texas, Custer ran inside the top-five for the majority of the race and finished fourth – his best career finish at the 1.5-mile oval.
• Custer has earned a top-five in all three of his Xfinity Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway.
• Custer’s most recent start on a 1.5-mile oval was two weekends ago at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. Custer was involved in an accident on lap one and had mechanical issues. With no power steering, he added grip tape to his steering wheel and stayed in the race to finish 26^th.
• The O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 is the ninth of 10 races on 1.5-mile tracks on the 33-race NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule. Custer has earned two poles, five top-five finishes, six top-10s and has led 50 laps in the eight races run this season on 1.5-mile tracks.
• Custer’s average starting position of 6.3 and five pole awards leads all Xfinity Series regulars this season. He has earned 19 top-five starts and 24 top-10 starts in the 2018 Xfinity Series season.
• Custer’s best finish in the 2018 Xfinity Series so far is second, earned three times – May 26 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, Sept. 1 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway and Oct. 6 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway.
• Custer is seventh in the 2018 Xfinity Series playoffs with 3,011 points, 23 behind the cutoff position that will advance to the championship round. 
• No Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers are entered in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300.
• Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), the championship-winning NASCAR team, has partnered with Autodesk, a leader in software applications for the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media and entertainment industries. Autodesk will be the primary sponsor of the No. 00 Ford Mustangthis weekend at Texas. While this will be Autodesk’s first appearance on a racecar fielded by SHR, the software company has played a significant role in SHR’s success this season, which includes 14 victories across the Xfinity Series and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Autodesk’s advanced Power Inspect software is used to analyze precise points on SHR’s fleet of racecars. This ensures compliance with NASCAR’s technical regulations while simultaneously aiding designers in increasing competitiveness based on simulation and track testing. Utilizing Autodesk’s PowerShape and PowerMill software, SHR is able to produce complex geometry components that are proprietary to SHR and meet the demands of a high-performance environment. Headquartered in San Rafael, California, Autodesk makes software for people who make things, whether that’s a racecar or a skyscraper.

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

How important is it to have a partner like Autodesk involved behind the scenes of our race team?

“I’m extremely excited to have Autodesk on board because they’re more than just a sponsor. They play a significant role behind the scenes to make our cars go faster and help our guys build cars faster. Their technology and software is unmatched and I think, if it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t be competing for a championship right now. I’m hoping to put the Autodesk Ford in victory lane this weekend to pay them back for all of their hard work.”

Texas is statistically your most consistent track in the Xfinity Series. What is it going to take to put yourself in a position to advance? 

“It’s been a great track for us in the past and I’m looking forward to it probably more than any track right now. We definitely have to be on our game and be hunting for a win and stage points as much as possible. It’s doable to make the points up, but we’re going to really have to make some magic happen. We’ll go to Texas with a lot of speed because we always do at mile-and-a-half tracks, so there is no reason we won’t finish well as long as we don’t get involved in a wreck like last weekend.”

Its seems like stage points can make or break your championship opportunities.

“You see it in the cup series a lot and you see it here. If you don’t finish well in the first two stages you’re going to fall way behind – that’s what is so exciting about our sport. You can go in to a weekend with all the confidence in the world and if you miss out on one stage you may have missed out on a championship. You have to be consistent the entire race. At Texas, we have had some bad luck in the first two stages, but always end up with a great finish – that can’t happen this weekend.”

At Kansas, you ran the entire race with grip tape on your steering wheel after your power steering went out. How was that?

“That sucked. I hope I never have to do that again. I’m glad we have power steering. It was something we had to do because every point counts at the end of these rounds.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

What is it about Texas that make you confident about making up the points deficit?

“Texas is arguably our best and most consistent track because Cole has some good experience there and we have really advanced our 1.5-mile program. The Autodesk Ford team has high hopes for the weekend and I think we’ll rack up some stage points and have a solid finish to put us back in the hunt for the Championship 4.”

Aric Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) make the short trek to Martinsville (Va.) Speedway this weekend for the first race of the Round of 8 in the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Almirola, who secured his spot in the Round of 8 by winning two weeks ago at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, is coming off a top-10 finish Sunday at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City.

The entire four-car SHR contingent had another solid weekend at Kansas as all four were able to advance to the Round of 8. SHR is the only organization with all of its teams still battling for the championship, which culminates next month with the winner-take-all season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The two-time championship-winning SHR organization, which makes up 50 percent of the remaining playoff field, is the first since Joe Gibbs Racing in 2016 to have all of its entries reach victory lane, which it did this season.

Martinsville, which is located approximately two hours from SHR’s headquarters in Kannapolis, North Carolina, is the first of three races in the Round of 8. It’s vital for Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield team to earn maximum points this weekend as he’s currently ranked eighth in points with 4,006, 12 behind fourth-place Chase Elliott. A win at any of the next three races would automatically lock the Almirola into the Championship 4 that will compete for the Cup Series title at Homestead.

In this year’s spring race at the Virginia half-mile oval, Almirola qualified 10^th and finished 14^th after running in the top-10 late in the race before receiving a pit-road speeding penalty. Overall at the concrete track, the 34-year-old has one top-five finish and three top-10s in 19 starts. He’s led 56 laps there and has an average start of 20.1 and an average finish of 22.0.

Almirola piloted a special bacon-themed Smithfield Ford Fusion to victory lane at Talladega. The unique paint scheme coincided with Smithfield’s Bacon for Life promotion. Yes, it’s possible to win bacon for life. The sweepstakes can be entered by finding specially marked packages of Smithfield bacon in stores, then visiting Smithfield.com/BaconForLife and entering the unique code provided in the package. More than 1,000 runners-up will be awarded select bacon merchandise during the sweepstakes, which runs until Dec. 31.

Before heading to .526-mile, paperclip-shaped track this weekend, Almirola participated in a Goodyear Tire test Tuesday at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. The test marked the first time the 2019 Cup Series Ford Mustang model has been on the track. One driver from each of the four manufacturers participated in the one-day test. “It’s comfortable to drive and it looks awesome – just like you would buy it off of the showroom floor,” Almirola said. “It’s cool to see all of the effort the Ford teams and Ford Performance have put into making the Mustang come to reality. It’s been nice to have the first official laps in the Mustang for us to collect some data and get ready for 2019.”

Kansas is the 30^th points-paying event during which the Smithfield livery has adorned Almirola’s No. 10 Ford Fusion. Smithfield, a brand of Smithfield Foods, which is based approximately five hours northeast of SHR headquarters in Smithfield, Virginia, is in its seventh season with Almirola and its first with SHR. Founded in 1936, Smithfield is a leading provider of high-quality pork products, with a vast product portfolio including smoked meats, hams, bacon, sausage, ribs, and a wide variety of fresh pork cuts.

Through 32 races this season, Almirola has earned one win with an average start of 16.3 and an average finish of 13.3 with three top-five finishes and 14 top-10s. He’s also led 181 laps this season, already a career best with four races remaining.

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

Of the next three races, is there one that stands out to you?

 “I think Martinsville will be a good place for us. We ran really well there in the spring and Clint (Bowyer) won there in the spring so, obviously, Stewart-Haas Racing has a good setup for there and we have good cars. I think the amazing thing about our organization is that I don’t think we have any weaknesses. We can go pretty much anywhere and win. I think one of the coolest things about SHR and Ford is that we have fast racecars and, when you have fast cars, you can win anywhere.”

What does it feel like to have Tony Stewart put so much belief in you?

“It’s meant so much to me to have Tony and Gene (Haas) and everybody to believe in me and, honestly, the people at Ford, too. Ford believed in me and supported me throughout the process and wanted me to stay driving a Ford, if possible. Smithfield, too, they’ve been a great sponsor and have been supportive. To have all of those people believe in me and continue to believe in me through years of some success, and years of not much success at all – they still believed in me and, when given the right opportunity and right equipment, I can go and be successful. That’s why winning at Talladega was so special to me. I felt like it was validation for them believing in me, but it’s also the only way I know how to pay all of these people back. The only way to pay them back was to go perform, and to win was a really big deal.”

What is it like showing up at the racetrack with a chance to win each week? 

“It’s invigorating, it really is. It brings so much energy to myself and to the race team. When you show up at the racetrack every week and you know you have a shot to win, it brings a whole other level of focus, attention to detail, everything. Because when you don’t feel like you do, you go into it thinking, ‘I hope we have a good weekend, I hope things go our way,’ but when you know you have a car that can win, there is just a fire that burns inside you and the race team. You just show up at the track and you’re ready to kick some butt.”

Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 Busch Beer Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing have been the class of the field since they formed prior to the start of the 2014 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. They are likely to be fast again as they head to Martinsville (Va.) Speedway for Sunday’s First Data 500 and the first race in the Round of 8 of the 2018 Cup Series playoffs.

The most impressive part of the No. 4 Busch Beer team might be different than what most would expect. Since the middle of July, the team has faced adversity and has had to look to its depth to fill four roles left vacant by a varying set of circumstances.

Rear tire changer Daniel Smith, who joined the No. 4 team prior to its 2014 championship run, received a medical diagnosis in the middle of August that sidelined him for the remainder of 2018. The team turned to Michael Johnson, who came on board prior to the Aug. 18 race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and will fill the role for the remainder of the season.

Mechanic Richard Bean, a member of the No. 4 team since 2014, also was lost for the remainder of 2018 for medical reasons following the Labor Day Weekend race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Shawn Warren stepped into his role and will stay with the team for the remainder of the year.

In addition to the two teammates sidelined for medical reasons, front tire changer Shayne Pipala and tire specialist Jamie Turski also joined the No. 4 team since July. Pipala joined the No. 4 team July 18 and Turski joined Sept. 20.

Each member of a NASCAR Cup Series team plays a vital role in the performance and overall success it is able to achieve on the racetrack – and the No. 4 team is no different. While the performance on the track has continued to function at a high level with new faces, it continues to get better every week as it continues to work together for a common goal.

This week, as they head to Martinsville, Harvick and the team will have their work cut out for them. The shortest track on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit has presented a challenge for the No. 4 team since 2014. The track’s low banking and tight corners provide some of the closest and toughest competition on the schedule.

Due to the tight quarters, a racecar rarely finishes a race at Martinsville without at least a tire mark on the door or a few dents in the sheet metal.

What makes it maddening for competitors is that they can race to the front of the field and stay there throughout the majority of the event, only to get shuffled back on a late-race restart if they wind up in the outside lane.

Harvick and the No. 4 team suffered that very fate at Martinsville in April 2016, when he started 19^th, raced to the front and led 72 laps before being stuck in the outside lane on consecutive late-race restarts, ultimately finishing 17^th.

But the madness of Martinsville can work to a driver’s benefit, as well. Harvick found that out in April 2011, when he started ninth, led just six of 500 laps and beat runner-up Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the finish line by .727 of a second.

Harvick and the No. 4 team have finished fifth in their last two appearances in Martinsville and would like to continue that streak this weekend in the First Data 500. The No. 4 team has shown speed with two top-five finishes, three top-10s and 265 laps led and ranks sixth in total points over the span of his nine Martinsville starts since the start of 2014.

Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing, the current points leader entering the Round of 8, holds a one-point advantage over second-place Harvick. The No. 4 team also holds a 39-point advantage over fifth-place driver and SHR teammate Clint Bowyer for the final transfer spot.

A win this weekend at Martinsville would secure Harvick’s position in the winner-take-all, Championship 4 round at Homestead-Miami Speedway and give him a shot at his second Cup Series championship. 

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Busch Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Where do you want to be at Martinsville to help you avoid trouble on the racetrack?

“I think the best position to be in at any racetrack is in the lead. You want to be in control of the race and try to get yourself in a position to where you can have a good, clean restart and have as much clear track, especially at Martinsville, just for the fact that there is so much pushing and shoving on the restarts to get to the bottom lane that you want to try to be as far forward as possible.”

Does winning a grandfather clock mean more to you than other trophies?

“The clock at Martinsville in pretty unique. I think, as you look at the clock and the history that comes with the clock and being represented by that particular trophy, it’s something that I like. I think some of the racetracks have boring and stale trophies and, when you go to Martinsville they’re cool clocks that represent who Martinsville is. When you go to the Daytona 500 and win the Harley J. Earl Trophy, it represents who Daytona is. When you go to some tracks and have a Plexiglas and sticker trophy, well maybe that represents some of the racetracks that we go to and some of them are the same.”

With two kids, is there more Halloween planning now?

“I feel sorry for Piper, just for the fact that her mom dresses her up like she did with Keelan, in some sort of outfit that she will probably look at the pictures and think, ‘What were you thinking when you put me in that Lion costume?’ I think she might be a dinosaur this year, so I think that’s probably unfair, but sometimes you just pick and choose the battles that you fight at home. That’s just not a battle for me. I just grin and smile and say she is probably going to hate you in 20 years.”

Kurt Busch is ready for the sectional round of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Busch and the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) earned one of the final eight playoff positions and have three races to make it into the winner-take-all season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

If one notices the term “sectional,” think back to the old Indiana High School basketball championship, which was contested in a single classification for all schools until 1997. It took four rounds to get the final four – or state championship – weekend. The format went sectional, regional, semi-state and final four.

So this week’s First Data 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway race is the “sectional” round for Busch.

And what a history Martinsville has considering it opened for business in 1947, two years before NASCAR came to be. Every series champion including Busch has competed at the track, which has hosted Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series events twice a year since 1950.

Martinsville is the shortest track on the NASCAR schedule and, viewed from the air, its looks like a paperclip as its long straightaways lead into tight, flat turns. The racing there can be described as “give-and-take,” with drivers giving some bumps and taking some bumps while dozens of cars constantly fight for space in its tight confines.

So, no matter how good a driver’s car is, one does need a bit of luck to win at Martinsville. Several drivers have been leading late in the 500-lap race only to be nudged out of the way in the closing laps. A good vehicle is needed, but also that stroke of luck.

Should Busch win this weekend, he’ll not only score a final-four berth, but once again score one of the most unique and coveted trophies in NASCAR – the Ridgeway Furniture Company’s grandfather clock that’s given to race winners at Martinsville Speedway.

The tradition of giving the famous grandfather clock to the winner of every NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville got its start in 1964. Henry Clay Earles, who founded the short track, was inspired to use the grandfather clock as his trophy when Curtis Turner told him he had to start finding storage room for his trophies and give some away, as well. It was then that NASCAR’s most iconic trophy was born.

Busch already has a pair of grandfather clocks for winning the fall Martinsville race in 2002 and the spring race in 2014 – the latter win for SHR. He also won the pole positon for the fall race in 2006.

He knows he will have a good Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion from crew chief Billy Scott this weekend. He’s also hoping for a stroke of luck, as well.

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

How much does pit strategy become a factor at Martinsville? 

“It’s definitely something that comes into play. You may gamble early to pick up some positions on the track, especially if you’ve had trouble in qualifying. It’s just one of those things, though, where you always hope you’re on the right one (strategy) and, if you get caught on the wrong one, then you’re kicking yourself the whole time.”

How much more important is track position at a place like Martinsville?

“Track position is everything, everywhere, but at Martinsville it is just so easy to lose it. It doesn’t take much to find yourself going backward, whether it’s a situation with someone bumping you out of the way or you get too high on the track and up in the marbles. Then, deal with what that does to the tires and, boom, next thing you know, you may have had a 10^th-place car and now you are 18^th. It’s a goal all day to work your way forward and then just to have smooth pit stops to carry you through those midpoints of the race. Then, at the end, when everything is on the line, you have to be aggressive and you can’t be afraid to use the fenders on people to get that solid finish.” 

What is the toughest part about racing at Martinsville? 

“To me, the toughest part about Martinsville is you just never have a moment to breathe. You have to be on your game nonstop for 500 laps because somebody’s on you, or you are on top of somebody the whole time, and there’s just no room for error.”

No. 14 Rush Truck Centers Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) driver Clint Bowyer endured a major crisis in March when he last visited Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. Minutes after winning his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race for SHR, Bowyer ran up into the stands to celebrate with the Virginia race fans.

“It’s awesome at Martinsville,” Bowyer said. “You’re on the front straight away and you’re talking to the people. You don’t even have to scream to them. You can hear what they’re saying.”

That’s when the crisis occurred.

“They didn’t hear me when I was asking them for a Busch beer – none of them,” he said. “They were all like, ‘Are you serious?’ I’m like, ‘Yes, I’m serious – give me a beer.’ But to be able to go up there and interact with those fans and share a beer with them, it’s just special. That’s what celebrating is all about.”

Bowyer finally got his beer and celebrated with the fans.

He hopes he’ll get a second chance to drink beer in the crowd this Sunday as the Cup Series returns to Martinsville for the First Data 500 – a race in which the stakes are as high as any this season. Martinsville is the first of the three-race Round of 8 in the Cup Series playoffs that determines the final four drivers who will contend for the title Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

A win at Martinsville Sunday guarantees a place in the Homestead finale. Bowyer enters the Round of 8 fifth in the points but only three points out of the fourth and final transfer position.

“Now it is getting down to the nitty-gritty,” he said. “Now it is eight good teams. There were 16 good teams, but there are eight damn good teams. All eight of these teams have found victory lane and things like that. Now you’re starting to pick up the pace or you’re going home.”

Bowyer’s No. 14 Ford will carry the Rush Truck Centers paint scheme again this weekend in Martinsville. Rush Truck Centers has been the primary partner on the No. 14 team since Bowyer arrived at SHR in 2017 and has been with the organization since 2010. The Texas-based company has used Bowyer and the team to appeal to NASCAR fans as one way to recruit the technicians it needs to operate the largest network of commercial truck and bus dealerships in the country, with locations in 22 states. According to Rush Truck Centers, the trucking industry is expected to need 200,000 diesel technicians over the next 10 years to keep up with maintenance demands.

In addition to his March victory on the flat, half-mile Martinsville oval, Bowyer owns six top-five finishes and 14 top-10s in 25 starts there. Located just 90 minutes from his Mocksville, North Carolina home, Bowyer says the facility reminds him of the roots of the sport. The pictures of his family running down the front stretch after the victory in March were some of the season’s best.

“Martinsville for me is my new home track,” he said. “Everybody lives down in the Charlotte area. We live up north, Winston-Salem area. That’s my home track. That’s the one racetrack you drive back and forth on qualifying day then go back up there for the race.

“Martinsville has such an old-school feel. Even the two-lane road going up to it where you can’t ever get around anybody. You’re stuck in traffic and then you finally get on the open road. Then, you get a ticket as soon as you get across the Virginia line. I had the same guy pull me over three years in a row. Finally, he gave me a ticket, which I deserved, and then you get to the racetrack. You’re pulling into these people’s backyards and here’s this awesome racetrack.”

Bowyer is part of a four-Ford SHR contingent that put all four of its drivers in the Round of 8 – the only team to do so in 2018. SHR owns 11 victories and each of its four drivers has visited victory lane in 2018. Bowyer hopes he can add to those numbers at one of the Round of 8 races in Martinsville, Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth or ISM Raceway near Phoenix.

“I am way more comfortable on the short tracks,” Bowyer said. “If I can put together Martinsville and Phoenix like I am capable of and run Texas like we are capable of, I think we can be in Homestead (for the winner-take-all championship final).”

If that happens, he won’t have trouble finding a post-race Busch beer.

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Rush Truck Centers Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Is there any gloating at SHR over the 2018 performance?

“No, and that is what is cool about SHR. There is none of that. There are no cocky attitudes or arrogance or anything else. Everyone works hard and are racers and we’re damn proud of what we’ve accomplished. We all know that we have to continue to do that and continue to get better because, if we are not, the next team is. There is a lot of work to be done. We need to bring a championship home to Ford. They have invested so much into their motorsports program, into Stewart-Haas in particular, each and every one of us. They invest in us.”

What are your thoughts on Martinsville?

“Yeah, for me, I spent a lot of time on an airplane this week and a lot of time thinking and just playing out where we are at. Where we are at as a race team and as far as the playoffs and opportunities ahead and things like that. I have two good tracks for me that historically have been good and can put me in the Championship 4 for a shot at the championship at Homestead. I love Phoenix. That is another good track for us. This is a big deal – I know it is.”

Should there be more Martinsville-type tracks on the circuit? 

“If I could do anything in this sport, I would remove that track and I would move it as we go all through the country. That’s what I would do. We need more short tracks and places just like Martinsville is exactly the ticket.”

Aric Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) head into Kansas Speedway in Kansas City this weekend coming off a win Sunday at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The four-car SHR contingent dominated the superspeedway race by leading 155 of 193 laps. Almirola only led a single lap, the final one, but it was the most important lap. The Tampa native crossed the finish line in the Smithfield Bacon for Life Ford Fusion first to earn his first win while driving for SHR and the second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win of his career.

Overall, SHR had a solid weekend at the 2.66-mile superspeedway, which started by seizing the first four starting positions during qualifying Saturday. Almirola’s victory was SHR’s first at Talladega in the team’s 10 year history. Kentucky Speedway in Sparta is the only remaining active track where SHR is winless.

Capturing the victory at Talladega also means Almirola and the No. 10 team automatically transfer to the Round of 8 in the Cup Series playoffs. While Almirola’s spot is secure in the Round of 8, it’s still vital for the team to perform at its highest potential and score maximum points this weekend at Kansas. Each point will be crucial for the No. 10 team as it works to advance to the Round of 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion will be crowned.

Almirola piloted a special bacon-themed Smithfield Ford Fusion at Talladega. The unique paint scheme coincides with Smithfield’s Bacon for Life promotion. Yes, it’s possible to win bacon for life. The sweepstakes can be entered by finding specially marked packages of Smithfield bacon in stores, then visiting Smithfield.com/BaconForLife and entering the unique code provided in the package. More than 1,000 runners-up will be awarded select bacon merchandise during the sweepstakes, which runs until Dec. 31.

The No. 10 team rolls into Kansas after qualifying fourth and finishing ninth at this year’s spring event there. In his 13 Cup starts at the 1.5-mile oval, Almirola has accumulated five top-10 finishes along with 69 laps led. Almirola finished ninth at Kansas last fall. Overall, the Smithfield driver has an average starting position of 15.8 and an average finishing positon of 19.8 at Kansas.

Almirola heads into Sunday’s race fifth in the standings with 3,087 points and, having automatically secured his spot in the Round of 8 with the Talladega victory, he will advance farther into the playoffs than ever has in his seven-year Cup Series career. All four SHR entries are still alive in the playoffs, making up 33.3 percent of the remaining playoff field with all four cars in the top-six in points.

Kansas is the 29^th points-paying event during which the Smithfield livery has adorned Almirola’s No. 10 Ford Fusion. Smithfield, a brand of Smithfield Foods, which is based approximately five hours northeast of SHR headquarters in Smithfield, Virginia, is in its seventh season with Almirola and its first with SHR. Founded in 1936, Smithfield is a leading provider of high-quality pork products, with a vast product portfolio including smoked meats, hams, bacon, sausage, ribs, and a wide variety of fresh pork cuts.

Almirola’s Talladega win marked Ford’s 16^th victory this season with SHR accounting for 11 of those. The manufacturer has seven Cup Series wins at Kansas with the most recent Ford win captured by SHR’s Kevin Harvick this past spring. All seven Ford drivers who remain in contention for the NASCAR playoffs have earned victories, the first time since 1997 that Ford has had seven different drivers visit victory lane.

Through the first 31 races this season, Almirola has earned one win with an average start of 16.8 and an average finish of 13.5 with three top-five finishes and 13 top-10s. He’s also led 181 laps this season, already a career best with five races remaining in the 2018 season.

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

How do you view going to Kansas? It has been one of your better tracks, but it’s also presented you with challenges.

“It’s great going to Kansas and being in the playoffs and being locked into the next round. I got hurt there last year in May and that was a big deal for me to go back there in October and rebound and kind of face the track, if you will. We went there and ran top-10, and that was a great day for me to kind of go and put that behind me. We went back to Kansas, ran well and it’s not on my radar anymore going into that race and thinking, ‘Hey, I broke my back here.’ This year in the spring with Stewart-Haas Racing, I ran in the top-10 almost the entire weekend and got a top-10 finish. Going to Kansas, I feel like I’ve put the whole back thing behind me and I don’t even think about it. I go there and it’s just another racetrack, and we just have to execute and show up with a fast racecar and, if we do that, we’ll get out of there with a good day and I think we have the capability to win there.”

John Klausmeier, Crew Chief of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

As a crew chief, how do you prepare setup-wise for Kansas? 

“The groove is fairly narrow, so you have to be careful not to step over the edge. The tires are on the harder side and they generate some heat. Later in the run, typically you lose rear grip more than other tracks, but you just have to make sure you really have your car balanced in the groove and really be able to move up later in the race.” 

The previous race at Kansas was a night race. Traditionally, how different is the spring race from the fall race?

“Typically, the track gets freer going into the nighttime in the spring race. During the fall, the sun is out and sometimes the track will take more rubber and the groove will usually move up a little bit quicker than it does in the spring race.”

As we get close to ending this year, what has it been like working with Aric and the success you have had together?

“It has been great working with Aric. I like Aric outside of the racecar and we are friends outside of racing. He has a great attitude when he comes to the track and he’s always prepared. This is a really good opportunity for him and he’s making the most of it by being prepared every weekend.”