Category: Pre-Race Reports

“Blue Moon of Kentucky” is the official bluegrass song of the State of Kentucky. It was written by bluegrass musician Bill Monroe in 1946 and recorded by his band the Blue Grass Boys.

The song has been covered by many artists, including Elvis Presley, Patsy Klein and Paul McCartney and, in 2003, the song was added to the United State Library of Congress National Recording Registry.

Perhaps the most famous – or infamous – version of the song was in the 1987 smash hit movie “Planes, Trains and Automobiles.” Steve Martin, playing Neal Page, and the late John Candy, playing Del Griffith, sang it in tune while they were driving a burned-out and roofless car in Illinois, headed to Chicago for Thanksgiving.

What does all this have to do with Kurt Busch and Saturday night’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta? Nothing, but anytime a Del Griffith reference can be made, it’s good for copy.

Busch, driver of the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), is hoping his car will stay in much better shape than the one Page and Griffith were driving in “Planes, Trains and Automobiles.”

There have only been seven NASCAR Cup Series races at Kentucky since the series made its inaugural trip to the 1.5-mile oval in 2011. Busch, while winless at Kentucky, has knocked down a top-five finish, four top-10s and led a total of 51 laps. His average start is 12.0 and his average finish is 12.9.

Busch’s best Kentucky performance came in 2016, when he qualified third and led once for 10 laps before finishing fourth. The third-place qualifying effort equaled his best at Kentucky, first earned in the inaugural Cup Series race in 2011. And his fourth-place finish was his best at the track, topping his previous best of sixth secured in the 2013 race.

That fourth-place finish allowed Busch to check off another stat box on his tenured Cup Series resume, as it gave Busch a top-five at every track on the Cup Series schedule.

And if Busch scores his 30^th career victory Saturday night in the Bluegrass state, he’ll have to decide between “Blue Moon of Kentucky” and “My Old Kentucky Home.”

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

Talk about Kentucky Speedway.

“Kentucky was one of the first tracks to reconfigure their banking along with the new asphalt. They changed turns one and two to add a bunch of banking and then left turns three and four on the lower side of the banking. It just completely changes both ends of the track. SMI (Speedway Motorsports Inc.) is challenging themselves to almost replicate someplace like Darlington, where both ends of the track are very different. It just makes it that much more challenging. I had been going to the track for nearly a decade and it was Kentucky, it was flat on both ends. So you just have to go in with a new mindset. I still think the key is to make sure the car is cutting though turns three and four. You can make a pass coming out of turn four.”

So it’s sort of like Pocono and Darlington, where you’re trying to find the right combination even though both ends of the track are different?

“That’s exactly what it is. The track was designed where you have to dial it in at both ends and you have to compromise. And anytime there is compromise, some teams will have speed in one corner and not in the other. And that will create better opportunities for passing.”

You’ve been in the top-five a lot this year. Do you think a victory is on its way?

“You have to be in position and you have to be able to pounce when others have a miscommunication or a slow pit stop.  I mean, the 18 car wasn’t very effective in the first half of the race at Chicago two weeks ago. The second half of the race, whether it was adjustments or the track, came to them, and his pit crew leapfrogged him above other pit crews and he put himself in position. You can’t just expect to win if you’re running fifth with 50 laps to go. You have to execute.”

You’ve been competing at Kentucky since its beginning, running the track’s inaugural NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in 2000. The track has changed quite a bit even since the NASCAR Cup Series began racing at Kentucky in 2011. What did you think of the place when you first arrived as a Truck Series rookie?

“I went there for the first time when I was racing Trucks. It was an inaugural race and I thought that, since it was the first time anyone went there, that rookies had just as good of a shot to win as veterans. I overdrove that race every ounce I could and ended up wrecking with about 15 laps to go while running in the lead pack. I hit pretty hard. I think that was one of the hardest hits I’ve taken. Kentucky stood up and bit me the first time I was there. And, up until 2011, we never ran a Cup race there, so we used it as a test facility. My time when I was at Roush, I think we were there every other Tuesday making laps. So, I had plenty of laps at Kentucky, but not in race configuration.”

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Light Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), is looking to check an item off of his to-do list Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta.

Harvick has scored Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wins at 21 of 23 racetracks on the current Cup Series schedule. He lacks only Kentucky and Pocono (Pa.) Raceway – both tracks with a race remaining in 2018.

The only driver to win at more tracks than Harvick is 2015 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch, who has won races at all 23 venues the series visits with his victory in May at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway sealing the feat.

For Harvick, Kentucky also happens to be the only track on the current schedule where he’s yet to score a top-five finish.

The 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion had a strong effort at the newly repaved Kentucky Speedway in 2016. He started from the pole position after inclement weather cancelled Cup Series qualifying and the starting lineup was set according to the NASCAR Rule Book. He went on to lead a race-high 128 of 267 laps around the 1.5-mile oval, but fuel strategy caused him to make a late-race pit stop that foiled his strong run and ended in a ninth-place finish. In 2017, Harvick again finished ninth at Kentucky.

The native of Bakersfield, California has scored five consecutive top-10 finishes at Kentucky dating back to 2013 with a best finish of seventh coming in 2014.

Also on the to-do list for Harvick this weekend and the seven races that follow is the accumulation of playoff points that are so critical at this point in the season. Thus, even more pressure to start up front and, ultimately, to try and win the Busch Pole award. Harvick’s 27 playoff points heading to Kentucky rank him second to Busch, who leads the series with 30.

The best way to score the maximum amount of playoff points in a race is to start up front, earn stage points and win races. Harvick and the No. 4 team can accomplish all of those goals with a win this weekend – and cross another track off his list while scoring the most playoff points possible.

The No. 4 Busch Light team will give it everything it has to earn the win and the points Saturday night at Kentucky.

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

You’ve scored five straight top-10s at Kentucky Speedway but are still looking for that first top-five and win. What makes Kentucky so challenging?

“We’ve actually run really well there the last couple of years and led a lot of laps. I’m not sure it is any one thing that makes Kentucky challenging to be honest, just for the fact that they’ve recently repaved it and it really is a unique track that is hard to get everything just right.”

What challenges does the heat in Kentucky present this time of year?

“Kentucky is always a hot race and we’ve had some weather there over the last few years, but to be honest, it’s the same for everyone. It really just comes down to preparation for the driver and the team. As a driver I have to take care of myself to make sure I’m ready. The team has to focus on the doing the best they can to make it as bearable in the car. It also makes it tough on the handling of the car, especially on a new racing surface. It’s going to be very slick and hard to get the setup just right, but I’m confident in my team and the preparation they put into this race.”

Aric Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion team head back to Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway for the second race of the season at the 2.5-mile superspeedway oval. The season-opening Daytona 500 there left Almirola heartbroken. He was leading on the last lap when contact with another competitor sent him up the racetrack, causing him to lose the most prestigious race of the year with just a half a lap remaining.

The team heads to Daytona this weekend with momentum from last weekend’s race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois, where the 34-year-old Almirola led a career high 70 laps before being relegated to a 25^th-place finish as the result of two loose wheels. Almirola won the first stage of the 267-lap race to earn 10 bonus points and one playoff point.

Even though February’s Daytona 500 had a disappointing ending for the Smithfield team, Almirola has another chance to visit victory lane at “The World Center of Racing.” Almirola does know his way there. In the July 2014 race, the Tampa native led 14 laps and drove his Ford Fusion to victory in the rain-shortened event to earn his first career Cup Series win.

In addition to being behind the wheel of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion, Almirola will also participate in a charitable donation this week. Almirola will join Smithfield, a brand of Smithfield Foods, for an event at the Publix supermarket located at 1500 Beville Road in Daytona Beach Thursday. The event begins at 11 a.m. EDT with Almirola helping Smithfield present a protein donation to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida as part of the company’s 2018 Helping Hungry Homes^® hunger-relief tour.

On the racetrack this season, Almirola has garnered seven top-10 finishes, Sunday’s stage win, has led a total of 71 laps, an average finish of 12.5 and an average start of 19.3. His superspeedway results show an 11^th-place finish at the Daytona 500 and a seventh-place finish at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April.

Almirola will make his 14^th Cup Series start at Daytona this weekend. He also has 10 starts in the Xfinity Series at the track located along Florida’s Central Coast. In fact, Almirola started on the pole in his first Xfinity Series outing in July 2007. Additionally, the Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) driver has also captured one win in the Xfinity Series while piloting the No. 98 Biagi-Den Beste Ford Mustang in July 2016. Almirola has three Daytona starts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with a best finish of 12^th.

With summer in full swing, fans have the opportunity to celebrate the grilling season by entering Smithfield’s “Hero of the Grill” contest that Almirola and five-time world-champion barbecue pitmaster Tuffy Stone helped launch earlier this year. Fans are encouraged to nominate their favorite grill hero by visiting SmithfieldGetGrilling.com. One “Hero of the Grill” nominee will win $5,000. Plus, the first 10,000 nominees will have the chance to see their name featured on Almirola’s No. 10 Smithfield Ford at Richmond (Va.) Raceway in September.

Fans can also enter for their chance to win Smithfield’s Smoke Machine Mustang designed by team co-owner Tony Stewart with the help of drifting champion Vaughn Gittin Jr. They helped create a one-of-a-kind Ford Mustang RTR Spec 3 that will be given away to one lucky fan. Fans can register for their chance to win the suped-up Mustang and a trip to November’s Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead by visiting SmithfieldRacing.com, or by texting SMOKE to 82257.

Almirola’s No. 10 Ford Fusion had a different look for May’s non-points-paying NASCAR All-Star Race. Waffle House appeared on the car to help kick off its first-ever “Who’s Your All-Star?” sweepstakes in conjunction with Smithfield Foods. Fans can enter the sweepstakes by snapping a photo with their favorite Waffle House associate and sharing via Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #WhosYourAllStar. The top-10 associates and the customers who nominated them will receive special recognition and a Waffle House gift card. One grand-prize customer and associate winner will each receive a VIP experience to the NASCAR Cup Series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November.

This weekend’s event at Daytona marks the 16^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.

Ford has earned eight wins so far this season with Almirola’s SHR teammates earning seven of the victories for the blue oval – five by Kevin Harvick and two by Clint Bowyer. Harvick also captured the non-points-paying All-Star Race win at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. The manufacturer has 37 all-time series wins Daytona, and has earned eight wins in the last 16 races at the track.

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

How do hot temperatures and high humidity, like we’re starting to see in the current stretch of midsummer races affect the racecar?

“Hot temperatures and high heat at restrictor-plate races, especially, make them that much more difficult. You’re already really, really focused on everything going on and it’s very mentally draining. It’s like a high-speed chess match and you’re constantly on pins and needles, and constantly watching both sides of your car and you’re watching everything happening in front of you. You’re really tense all day long and the heat on top of it just gives you one more thing to think about and you have to try and block that out. You have to try and forget about the fact that you’re boiling inside the car and focus on everything going on around you.”

How was it to win the July Daytona race in 2014?

“The end goal is not just to make it to the top and be there. The end goal is to be successful at the highest level. To win at Daytona stamped a little bit of validation on the fact that I made it to the top and I won at the highest level of stock car racing in the United States. That win was a career highlight and I hope to add another win.”

Do you have any memories of the July Daytona race when you were growing up?

“I remember going to the Firecracker 400 in July at Daytona. We’d leave Tampa and stop at Disney World for a few days and then head to Daytona for the race. So I grew up going to Daytona and I loved it. Getting the opportunity to race at Daytona is special in itself, but then to be able to win my first Cup race was a very special day. I would say that is my proudest moment in racing so far. I still have a lot of races I want to win and a championship someday, though.”

Your first Xfinity Series win was the first time you were able to have your family in victory lane with you. How cool was it to have that experience with them?

“To see the smile on my kid’s face and the tears in my wife’s eyes, that was special. To have them there when I won my first Xfinity race, that was so cool. To see the reaction on my kids’ faces when they got Gatorade sprayed all over them and they got soaking wet – they were confused and startled but, at the same time, happy and elated. It was really cool.”

For the second straight week Kevin Harvick will get behind the wheel of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Kickin’ Ranch Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway for the Coke Zero Sugar 400.

Long known for being “Freaky Fast” and “Freaky Fresh,” Jimmy John’s is now expanding that message to celebrate the freaks who work for Jimmy John’s and their obsession with making the perfect sandwich for their customers. In addition to the new paint scheme, Jimmy John’s also just unveiled some new products for its customers, including Kickin’ Ranch dip and the 16-inch Giant sandwich.

The Kickin’ Ranch paint scheme is part of Jimmy John’s new ad campaign, the theme of which illustrates that the company cares about things normal people do, and that is what makes its sandwiches consistently fresh, fast and healthy. It is actually the first time the new advertising campaign peels back the curtain on some of the practices that make the brand the freakiest, and best, in the business.

As the NASCAR Cup Series reaches the halfway point of the season, it’s safe to say Harvick and the No. 4 Jimmy John’s team have been the freaks of the Cup Series field in 2018. They stand alone with a series-best 1,032 laps led and 13 top-five finishes, are tied for the series lead with five points-paying wins and 14 top-10 finishes, and rank second with 27 playoff points.

In addition, Harvick and the No. 4 Jimmy John’s team won the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway in May.

During the season-opening Speedweeks at Daytona, Harvick showed mixed results. He opened the season with a ninth-place finish in the non-points-paying 2018 Advanced Auto Parts Clash, followed that with a runner-up finish in the second Can-Am Duel 150, and finished 31^st after being collected in an accident in the Daytona 500.

Harvick, the 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion, won the Busch Pole Award in his most recent restrictor-plate start in April at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, where he led 12 laps and finished fourth.

While the overall season is reaching its halfway point, only eight races remain in the regular season, which means a win for Harvick and the Jimmy John’s Kickin’ Ranch team Saturday night at Daytona would give them additional playoff points in their run to the championship.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Kickin’ Ranch Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Describe the intensity of restrictor-plate racing?

“Plate racing is something you have to be aggressive at just for the fact that, if you’re not aggressive, it always seems like you’re not going to be where you need to be. Nine times out of 10, I believe the aggressor is going to be the guy who comes out on the good side of things, just for the fact that you’re making things happen and you’re not waiting for something else to happen. When you wait for something else to happen, that’s usually when you get in trouble because it’s usually someone else’s mess. You can still get in trouble if you’re aggressive but, it seems like with this rules package and the way things are, it’s best to stay aggressive and try to stay up front.”

What makes racing under the lights at Daytona in July so special?

“The July race at Daytona is special for a lot of reasons. I think when you look at the night race at Daytona, it kind of marks the halfway point of the year and you know you’re going to Daytona. It’s not the Daytona 500, but it’s still Daytona, and everybody wants to win a race at Daytona no matter what it’s in or what it’s for. Daytona just has that special place in our sport and everybody wants to win there.”

Life is fun for No. 14 Rush Truck Centers Ford Fusion driver Clint Bowyer these days, and he’s doing his best to share that fun throughout the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with teammates, fans, tracks and his corporate partners.

Bowyer has always been a lively character, but his 2018 success that includes two victories, six top-fives and 10 top-10s has brought him to the forefront as one of the sport’s most sparkling personalities. The Emporia, Kansas, native is sixth in the standings at the season’s halfway mark, and he has cemented a role with the four-car Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) team that has won seven races and scored 22 top-fives and 40 top-10s in 2018.

“It is a ton of fun to be able to win at this level of auto racing,” said Bowyer, who travels this week to Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway to compete in Saturday night’s 60th annual Coke Zero Sugar 400. “It is a dream come true to compete at this level, and once you are sitting in victory lane and you’ve beaten the best of the best, there is no feeling like it. To be able to share that with the men and women of Stewart-Haas Racing in victory lane, there is absolutely no gratification like that.”

Bowyer hopes to share that feeling with Daytona race fans as well this weekend. He and Daytona President Chip Wile created a “BBQ, Brews and Bowyer” ticket package that’s right down the alley of any Bowyer fan. The special package, $149 per ticket for adults and $69 for children 12 and under, includes food, beverages, Kansas City-style BBQ and Coca-Cola products in a Midway suite, along with a reserved seat and a visit by Bowyer before the race Saturday night.

Why would a driver agree to such an event minutes before racing at 200 mph on the high banks of Daytona? Bowyer said events like this are a key to success for NASCAR in the future. He’s learned this through his experiences in short-track racing as well as through attending team sports as a fan. It’s part of sharing the fun and learning from his experiences attending other sporting events.

“When I go to a football game, I go to a (NFL’s Kansas City) Chiefs games in the wintertime. I can’t wait to go back,” he said, “can’t wait to tailgate at Arrowhead. It is the best damn time I have ever had with my buddies. We go and let our hair down and have fun. Believe it or not I have left there and went, ‘Hey, who won?’ It is an event, not just a football game. You are there for the football game and there for the racing, but you are there for a good time.”

He sees NASCAR trending in the right direction, giving as much thought to the on-track product as well as what goes on in the grandstands and fan zones.

“I think (NASCAR’s) product is as good as it has ever been,” Bowyer said. “That is not an argument – the racing is better than it has ever been. Our tracks, they put on a show. They put on a party. They put on an event. It is not just those racecars on the track that put on that event. You have to be able to entertain the people, our fans, all weekend long. If you are going to invite them to the racetrack, you have to be able to put on a show and have them come back to their families and friends with memories and moments that they remember.”

It’s fitting Bowyer’s No. 14 Ford will carry the Rush Truck Centers paint scheme again this weekend in Daytona. 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. Rush Truck Centers wants to make NASCAR fans aware of these opportunities and knows that, with Bowyer’s background, he is the right guy to help get the message out.

“Rush Truck Centers keeps our trucks and transporters in great condition, and you could argue those are the most important parts of our race team. Without them, our cars never get to the racetrack,” said Bowyer, who will also spend time with Rush customers and guests this weekend to make their visit to the track memorable. “The employees of Rush Truck Centers are as detail-oriented as we are, and their technicians are the heartbeat of their dealerships. They play a critical role in the success of our race team.”

The team from Rush Truck Centers and Rush Enterprises Chairman, CEO and President Rusty Rush can frequently be found at the track hosting customers and supporting Bowyer and SHR. Bowyer considers them to be among his closest racing friends. In fact, when Bowyer won at Martinsville, Virginia, in March, Rush happened to be in that part of the country on business and made a surprise visit to help Bowyer and the team celebrate the victory.

Bowyer said Rush Truck Centers is not only a partner but a key ingredient to the team’s success. “We love seeing our friends from Rush Truck Centers and spending time with their customers,” he said. “Plus, Rusty knows our entire crew, and the leadership and inspiration he provides truly help motivate all of us.”

Daytona promises to be a fun weekend for Bowyer between BBQs with fans, hanging with Rush Truck Centers folks and the chance to race on the high banks of Daytona.

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

What are your first memories of racing at Daytona International Speedway?

“I remember Richard Childress hiring me and sending me to an ARCA test at Daytona. My eyes are this big; “Daytona? Really?” To be able to roll through that tunnel and see those high banks and Daytona, that’s your “I’ve made it” moment, and it’s still that way today. Every time you go there in February and roll through those tunnels and see them high banks, it just gives you chills. You know what I mean? You come back in July you don’t have – those are sweats, that’s sweat, those aren’t chills anymore. If you get chills in July, you need to go lay down, you’re too hot. But so much fun to be able to go back there, and every single year it’s just meaningful to get on those high banks and be able to compete at Daytona; because for me, it’s always been that moment of, “Hey, man, I got here.”

It’s difficult to believe, but the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is reaching its halfway point. It seems like just yesterday all the haulers were loading into Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway for February’s season-opening 60^th Daytona 500.

The haulers will enter Daytona International Speedway once again Thursday for the 18^th event of the 2018 season, the Coke Zero Sugar 400. After this race, it will be 18 down, 18 more to go.

Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), has had a successful start to the season. He is seventh in points and has three top-five finishes, nine top-10s and 12 top-15s in 17 races. He’s won two Busch Pole Awards and has led 284 laps – the most he’s led since he led 788 for the full 2015 season.

However, Busch has not yet won in 2018 and he hopes to change that this week at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.

He won the biggest race of his career in February 2017 at Daytona, the 59^th Daytona 500.

With a last-lap pass of Kyle Larson in turns one and two, Busch won the “Great American Race” in his 17th attempt. In leading the only lap that mattered, Busch scored his first points-paying NASCAR Cup Series win on a restrictor-plate racetrack, giving him victories on every type of circuit the series visits – short tracks, high-banked ovals, flat tracks and road courses.

He’s also performed well in exhibition races at Daytona.

Busch won both the Advance Auto Parts Clash and the first Can-Am Duel qualifying race at Daytona in 2011. He led three laps and beat Jamie McMurray to the finish line by .058 of a second to win the Clash in 2011. Five days later, he went on to lead seven laps and beat Regan Smith to win the first Can-Am Duel 150 by .065 of a second. Busch narrowly missed a clean sweep of 2011 Speedweeks by finishing fifth in the Daytona 500, which was won by rookie Trevor Bayne.

The midterm is upon us and Busch is hoping is he can pass with a big victory that would lock him into the playoffs.

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

What makes success in restrictor-plate racing so elusive?

“I think being in the right place at the right time is one of the toughest things to do, but you have to have that to be successful. When you have a car built by (crew chief) Billy Scott and Stewart-Haas Racing, you feel like you have the best bullet possible when you show up for your first practice session. So, I’m thankful to have Billy Scott and everyone from SHR on my side when it comes to superspeedway racing.”

While teamwork is a part of restrictor-plate racing, eventually you need to look out for yourself. At what point in the race do you do that?

“You’re looking out for yourself on lap one, but the percentage of it changes throughout the race. You want to work together as much as you can with teammates and other guys and gals that you’ve worked with in the past. But once it gets down to the final set of tires and the final fuel run, you’re really working independently. If it comes down to a late-race restart at Daytona, what goes through my mind is it isn’t going to be the last restart. So you have to be ready to roll with whatever comes your way – what drafting lane you’re in, where your teammates are and what game plan you have put together with them. There are so many different things going on that it’s kind of like a roulette wheel – when you spin and you’ve got your money laid down, you hope you have your money in enough areas to come out on top.”

You need drafting partners in order to be successful in a restrictor-plate race. How do you pick your dance partners? 

“You just quickly digest if they’re around you, in front of you, behind you. Every restart things change, every lap things change, but you’re always keeping them in mind to try and work with them.”

How much of what you experienced in the Daytona 500 is applicable to the Coke Zero 400?

“A lot of it. We finished second at Talladega. That’s all you’re trying to do – putting yourself in position to win, and that’s what we want to do again in July at Daytona.”

Event: Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 (Round 16 of 33)
Date: July 6, 2018
Location: Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway
Layout: 2.5-mile oval

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

●  The Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 will mark Cole Custer’s third career NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.
●  Custer leads the Xfinity Series driver standings, three points ahead of second-place Daniel Hemric.
●  Custer has competed in nine career restrictor-plate races in three different series. His best NASCAR Camping World Truck Series finish was 24th at Daytona, and his best ARCA finish was 10th at Daytona.
●  Custer won the pole for the 2016 ARCA season opener at Daytona, becoming the youngest pole winner in Daytona history among the ARCA, Truck, Xfinity and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
●  Custer is striving to earn his sixth consecutive top-five finish this weekend. He comes into Daytona fresh off a third-place finish Saturday at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois.
●  Custer has earned three poles, six top-five finishes, 12 top-10s and has led 106 laps in the 2018 Xfinity Series season.
●  Custer’s best finish in the 15 Xfinity Series races this season is second on May 26 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
●  Last weekend at Chicagoland, Custer started from the rear of the field, ran as high as second and battled inside the top-five for the majority of the race. In the closing laps, he had an issue on pit road that pushed him outside the top-five. Custer was able to pilot the Haas Automation Ford Mustang back to third behind Cup Series drivers Kevin Harvick and Kyle Larson.
●  This weekend, Custer will honor the 20th Fighter Wing branch of the United States Air Force on the windshield of his Haas Automation Ford Mustang as part of the NASCAR Salutes initiative. Custer will honor this branch to commemorate Sam Ard, who served as a mechanic at Shaw Air Force base for the 20th Fighter Wing. Ard was a two-time Xfinity Series champion who piloted the No. 00 car to 22 Xfinity Series wins in three years. Custer honored Ard last year with a commemorative paint scheme during the Darlington (S.C.) Raceway throwback weekend.

Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang

You lead the point standings heading into one of the most chaotic races of the season. Is there a strategy to try and stay out of trouble and hold the lead in points?

“Right now, we’re happy we have the points lead and it reflects how we’ve been running, but we’re still focused on trying to win races because that’s what it’s going to take in the playoffs. We need to prove to ourselves that we can win before we get to the playoffs. We’ll be racing as hard as ever this weekend.”

You said you aren’t content with top-five’s anymore. Does the Haas Automation team have a chance to beat the Cup Series guys every weekend?

“Right now, I feel like every week we can compete with anyone on the racetrack. It’s just not making any mistakes and beating all of them now. We just have to be perfect. We are so close.”

It was 150 degrees in the car last weekend at Chicagoland, and you’re headed to Daytona this weekend. How important is hydration and preparation when the laps begin to wind down?

“Even at a place like Daytona, it’s important to be hydrated because it’s always hot down in Florida during the summer. I’ll start hydrating early in the week in order to be 100 percent at the end of the race. The most important part is the last lap, so that’s where I need to be the most alert. We are athletes just like any other sport – we just compete in weather 50 degrees hotter than any other.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief of the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Team

You just achieved first in the points standings. Daytona is the wild card of the season. How do you go into Daytona with the mindset and strategy to hold the lead?

“Just like Cole mentioned, we aren’t going to lay down and stray from trying to win each and every race. We have come a long way on our speedway program, so we’re expecting to bring our fastest Haas Automation Ford Mustang, yet. The plan is to get up front and stay there. We have to prove to ourselves that we can win regular-season races.”

Event:             Overton’s 300
Date:               June 30, 2018
Location:         Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois
Layout:             1.5-mile oval

Kevin Harvick Notes of Interest

• The No. 98 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing with Biagi-DenBeste (SHR) makes its eighth appearance of 2018 with Kevin Harvick making his fourth of five scheduled appearances behind the wheel. Chase Briscoe has made three starts and Aric Almirola one.
• Hunt Brothers Pizza makes its third appearance as the primary sponsor of the No. 98 Ford with Harvick in 2018.
• In their first race of the season Feb. 24, Harvick and the No. 98 Hunt Brothers Pizza team scored the win at Atlanta Motor Speedway after starting fifth, winning both stages, and leading a race-high 141 of 163 total laps, beating runner-up Joey Logano by 4.183 seconds.
• Harvick has three Xfinity Series wins in 11 career starts at Chicagoland Speedway (July 2005 and 2007, and September 2014), one pole (July 2010), five top-five finishes and seven top-10s.
• This weekend marks Harvick’s first Xfinity Series start at Chicagoland Speedway since September 2014, when he started ninth, led 43 of 200 laps and scored the victory by 2.108 seconds ahead of runner-up Kyle Larson.
• In 344 career Xfinity Series starts, Harvick has 47 wins, 184 top-five finishes, 258 top-10s, 25 poles and 9,650 laps led.
• Harvick will be joined in the Overton’s 300 at Chicagoland field by SHR teammate Cole Custer in the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang.

Kevin Harvick, Driver No. 98 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang

“Chicagoland Speedway is a track that we’ve had a lot of success racing at in the Xfinity Series in the past. Last time we ran there, we were able to visit victory lane. I’m expecting the track to be hot and slick, which should make for some good racing. Richard Boswell and the guys on our No. 98 Hunt Brothers Pizza team have done a great job all year and I know they’ll be ready to go for it again this weekend at Chicagoland.”

It’s back to a more traditional oval circuit for Aric Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois.

Almirola’s first of two races last weekend on the road course at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway was Saturday’s NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race, in which he finished second. Almirola took part in the Saturday race looking to gain more road-course experience for Sunday’s main event. The extra track time in the K&N race, along with a strong Ford Fusion and solid calls by crew chief John Klausmeier, led Almirola to an eighth-place result in the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion in Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. The finish marked the Tampa native’s strongest finish at a road course in his Cup Series career.

It’s been since Memorial Day weekend at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway that the Cup Series has raced on a mile-and-a-half track, the configuration that dominates the 36-race schedule. Almirola finished 13^th at Charlotte and looks for another competitive weekend at Chicagoland. In his first Cup Series start at the suburban Chicago track in September 2012, he earned the outside pole position. His best finish at the track is 10^th, which he earned in September 2015.

At 1.5-mile tracks this season, Almirola hasn’t finished outside of the top-13, with the exception of a 32^nd-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth due to an accident. For the past seven seasons, Chicagoland Speedway has kicked off the NASCAR playoffs. However, this year the venue’s race date was moved to July, when the track hosted Cup Series races from 2001 through 2010.

In 16 Cup Series starts this year, Almirola has accrued an average start of 20.1, an average finish of 11.8, and he rounds out the SHR four-car contingent with the 10^th spot in the point standings. Additionally, Almirola has had three Cup Series career-best finishes in a row – seventh at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, 11^th Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, and eighth at Sonoma.

Almirola has four career Xfinity Series starts at Chicagoland, starting inside the top-10 each time, including one pole award in June 2011. The 34-year-old garnered two top-five finishes and two top-10s and led 10 laps in those four Xfinity Series starts. He also has two starts in the Camping World Truck Series at the track, both resulting in top-10 finishes.

With summer in full swing, fans have the opportunity to celebrate the grilling season by entering Smithfield’s “Hero of the Grill” contest that Almirola and five-time world-champion barbecue pitmaster Tuffy Stone helped launch earlier this year. Fans are encouraged to nominate their favorite grill hero by visiting SmithfieldGetGrilling.com. One “Hero of the Grill” nominee will win $5,000. Plus, the first 10,000 nominees will have the chance to see their name featured on Almirola’s No. 10 Smithfield Ford at Richmond (Va.) Raceway in September.

Fans can also enter for their chance to win Smithfield’s Smoke Machine Mustang designed by team co-owner Tony Stewart with the help of drifting champion Vaughn Gittin Jr. They helped create a one-of-a-kind Ford Mustang RTR Spec 3 that will be given away to one lucky fan. Fans can register for their chance to win the suped-up Mustang and a trip to November’s Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead by visiting SmithfieldRacing.com, or by texting SMOKE to 82257.

Almirola’s No. 10 Ford Fusion had a different look for May’s non-points-paying NASCAR All-Star Race. Waffle House appeared on the car to help kick off its first-ever “Who’s Your All-Star?” sweepstakes in conjunction with Smithfield Foods. Fans can enter the sweepstakes by snapping a photo with their favorite Waffle House associate and sharing via Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #WhosYourAllStar. The top-10 associates and the customers who nominated them will receive special recognition and a Waffle House gift card. One grand-prize customer and associate winner will each receive a VIP experience to the NASCAR Cup Series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November.

This weekend’s event at Chicagoland Speedway marks the 15^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.

Ford has earned eight wins so far this season with Almirola’s SHR teammates earning seven of the victories for the blue oval – five by Kevin Harvick and two by Clint Bowyer. Harvick also captured the non-points-paying All-Star Race win at Charlotte.

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

How do you feel about going to Chicagoland this weekend?

“I feel like if we go there and do all of the basics right, we’ll run in the top-10. If we get it all perfect, we’ll have a shot to be in victory lane with our Smithfield Ford Fusion. At each of the last three tracks, I’ve had the best finishes of my Cup career, so I’m really on a roll and I have a strong team behind me.”

Who inspired you to race?

 “I grew up watching my grandfather race dirt cars all over the Southeast and he was really talented. I fell in love with watching him race. He retired when I was 8 years old and asked me if I wanted to try my hand at racing. I did, so he bought me a go-kart and away we went. I started racing in Florida and, after the first year, we started traveling all over the East Coast racing in the World Karting Association. I raced on dirt ovals and I just loved it. From go-kart racing, I moved up to stock cars and Late Models and had some success in every rank that I competed at. It eventually led me to moving to North Carolina and I started driving a Late Model stock car for Joe Gibbs Racing. I kind of got my foot in the door with major teams in NASCAR and was able to bounce around for a few years until I found a home at Richard Petty Motorsports to drive in the Cup Series. That opportunity parlayed into the opportunity that I have now at Stewart-Haas Racing.”

Event:               Overton’s 300 (Round 15 of 33)
Date:                 June 30, 2018
Location:          Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois
Layout:             1.5-mile oval

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

• The Overton’s 300 will mark Cole Custer’s second career NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois.
• Custer is striving to earn this season’s fifth consecutive top-five in the Overton’s 300. He comes into Chicagoland fresh off a fourth-place finish Sunday at Iowa Speedway in Newton.
• Custer has earned three poles, five top-five finishes, 11 top-10s and has led 106 laps in the 2018 Xfinity Series season.
• Custer is second in the Xfinity Series driver standings, four points behind leader Elliott Sadler.
• In 18 career Xfinity Series starts and nine NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts at 1.5-mile ovals, Custer has one win, seven top-five finishes and 16 top-10s.
• In Custer’s first and only Xfinity Series start at Chicagoland, he led 41 laps but was shuffled to the middle of the pack before rallying for a seventh-place finish.
• Custer’s best finish in the 14 Xfinity Series races this season is second on May 26 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
• Custer has qualified inside the top-five in 10 of the 14 races run this season.
• Custer will be joined by SHR teammate Kevin Harvick in the No. 98 Hunt Brothers Ford Mustang.
• In 2017, Custer led the Xfinity Series with 422 points at 1.5-mile tracks.
• Two weekends ago at Iowa, Custer ran as high as third place and raced inside the top-five for the majority of the race.

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

Are you content with the team’s top-five consistency, or do you feel you’ve had the car to win every weekend?

“We go to the track to win every weekend, so I wouldn’t say we’re satisfied. We are second in the standings, though, and are happy to have some consistency lately with some top-five finishes. Consistency is key, but every driver out there wants to win every weekend.”

Would a win take some weight off your shoulders going forward in the season?

“A win would be huge for our team. I feel like we’re really close right now and it would give us some confidence for the rest of the year. It was a huge weight off of our shoulders last year at Homestead, but we feel that we should already have a few and counting.”

What is racing around Chicagoland like?

“Chicago is one of the best tracks we go to. It’s worn out, rough, and you can run all over the track. I think a lot of us look forward to going to Chicagoland because of the challenge it brings.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

The Haas Automation team has been dominant at 1.5-mile tracks. How important is it to succeed at mile-and-a-half tracks, knowing  Homestead is the winner-take-all championship race? 

“As you can see from last year, we focused heavily on our 1.5-mile program and carried the momentum and race notes to Homestead. Every time we go to a mile-and-a-half track, it is so important to run well and take every note we can because there is a championship on the line in November.”