DANICA PATRICK

Back to the Routine

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (Aug. 8, 2017) – After spending a weekend in Watkins Glen, New York, making both right- and left-hand turns at one of only two road courses on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule, Danica Patrick and the No. 10 Code 3 Associates Ford team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) look to settle back into their normal routine as the series travels to Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn for Sunday’s Pure Michigan 400.

Prior to last weekend’s race at the Watkins Glen International road course, Patrick and the No. 10 team had earned four consecutive top-15 finishes on oval tracks of varying length. Those results include a 15th-place effort at the 1.5-mile Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, 13th at the 1.058-mile New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, 11th at the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway and 15th at the 2.5-mile Pocono (Pa.) Raceway.

Patrick came close to making it five top-15 finishes in a row last weekend at Watkins Glen but, after running as high as 11th, midrace contact dropped her back toward the tail of the field. Patrick was only able to race her way back up to 22nd before taking the checkered flag.

This weekend, Patrick and the No. 10 Code 3 Associates Ford team return to Michigan International Speedway, a 2-mile oval. In the June event at the track, Patrick and the team had their shot at a top-15 run dashed by late-race contact. She was scored 15th when contact with another car on a restart with 10 laps to go sent the No. 10 Ford into the inside wall and relegated the team to a 37th-place finish.

Patrick has nine NASCAR Cup Series starts at Michigan and her best result is a 13th-place effort earned in June 2013. She has four top-20 finishes at the track.

In addition to her NASCAR Cup Series experience at Michigan, Patrick has made two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track and her best finish was an 18th-place result earned in June 2012.

Patrick also has three IndyCar Series starts at Michigan with one of those a top-10 effort when she finished seventh in August 2007 after leading five laps.

This weekend, Patrick and the No. 10 Code 3 Associates Ford team plan to utilize that past experience to get back into a routine and hopefully earn another top-15 finish at Michigan.

DANICA PATRICK, Driver of the No. 10 Code 3 Associates Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What kind of challenges does Michigan present?

“It’s really easy to have an imbalance at Michigan, whether it’s getting the power down on exit or most of the time being tight. I feel like it produces some great racing and there’s a lot of drafting, so you can use that to help pass cars.”

What are your thoughts on racing at Michigan?

“Michigan is a wide, fast track. There’s lots of room to move around and try different lines. I think it’s a momentum track and you have to focus on being smooth. At the end of the day, the car has to handle well. It has to feel good. It has to be a fast car. I think those are the challenges – getting your car to handle well and being smooth and consistent, lap after lap, at such a fast track.”

Kurt Busch has been successful at road-course racing throughout his NASCAR career.

It started in 2000 as a young driver in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He finished second in the road-course race at Watkin Glen (N.Y.) International and 11^th at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway. In his three NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Watkins Glen, he started first in each, won two (2006 and 2011) and finished third in 2007. In these three races Busch led 98 of the 250 laps available (39.2 percent).

In the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, Busch swept the poles for both road-course races in 2006. He won his fifth career Cup Series pole at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway in June and sixth at Watkins Glen in August, marking the only Cup Series poles Busch has earned on a road course.

He scored his first Cup Series road-course victory at Sonoma in 2011, leading a race-high 76 laps. Busch passed Denny Hamlin for the lead on lap 13 and stayed out front for the next 19 circuits around the 1.99-mile track. He relinquished the lead twice for scheduled, green-flag pit stops and took over the top spot for the final time on lap 88, leading the final 23 laps.

That means only Watkins Glen is left for Busch to score a road course victory in the Cup Series and he’s hoping the No. 41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Ford Fusion is up to the challenge. He has finished in the top-11 the last four years at The Glen, highlighted by a third-place drive in 2014.

Busch will have help from crew chief Tony Gibson, who was a car chief for Hendrick Motorsports and Jeff Gordon from 1999 until 2001. The team won both road-course races in 1999 (and the pole at Sonoma), won at Sonoma in 2000 and won at Watkins Glen in 2001.

Busch is hoping he can be a force on the road course as NASCAR’s summer stretch rolls on.

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

You’ve won a race at Sonoma and won Xfinity races at Watkins Glen. What does it take to be successful on the road courses?

“I think the biggest thing, as a driver, is maintaining the pace throughout the race. I’ve struggled a little bit in the races at Watkins Glen with braking power and I was too hard on the brakes, early in the race. It’s weird though, the Xfinity races I’ve run there and won, the brakes stayed consistent for me in that car. So I’ve just got to find the right combination with the Monster Energy Cup car because at Sonoma, we never really had any brake issue. So I think that is the key. If we find that right balance, that will help us stay consistent, and then you have the lap times at the end of the race where you can be competitive for a win.”

Should NASCAR run the “boot” at Watkins Glen?

“It would be interesting to see how it would play out. Are the corners in the boot too slow compared to the rest of the corners? And then I’ve heard that if we ran the boot, then the race distance would be shorter because the track is longer. And then the fans only get the see the cars come by them X amount of times and that’s why I’ve heard we don’t run the boot.”

Is there a road course in the world that you would like to run that you haven’t? Is there a “bucket list” track for you?  

“Oh yeah. To run the 24 Hours of Le Mans, or Monaco. I’ve never been to Laguna Seca. I’ve always raced in Sonoma and been to northern California many times, but I’ve never even gone to the property of Laguna Seca. I’ve just seen it on TV and video games. I would love to go there.”

How is stage racing on the road course compared to the ovals?

“I think it all depends on the speed of your car and the position you’re running on the racetrack. With the guaranteed yellow at the end of the stages, if you’re running eighth, ninth or 10^th, you’re almost in the worst spot because you want to stay out and gain those couple of bonus points for that stage. But if you’re running 11^th and you have no chance of catching 10^th, of course you’re going to pit before the yellow comes out. So you’ve got to pit two laps before and that way you forfeit your track position at the point, but you get your tires on and you’re looking to be in good position to leapfrog those top-10 guys who stayed out to gain those points. So it just depends how you’re running. I giggle a lot when we’re running 11^th and the stage flag comes out, it’s like, wow, we’re the best-running car that got no points. I always think, man, what should we have done at that moment? But at a lot of the oval tracks you’re going to lose a lap when you pit (under green), where on the road courses you’re not going to lose a lap. And so it’s a different game, dramatically. If you’re in one of those top-three or four spots, yeah, you’re going to be aggressive to try and gain that stage win, yet you don’t want to end up with a flat tire or with damage that will hurt your chances for later in the race. You have to keep in mind that two-thirds of the points available in a race are when the checkered flag drops, not when a stage flag drops.”

Is road-course racing a little more intense than it was in years past?

“It just seems like the gentlemen’s agreement or the etiquette of how road-course races were run in years past is less and less each year. Everybody’s really bumping and grinding a lot harder. They’re not afraid to throw in the front bumper when it’s not supposed to be in that position. That’s why I think the road courses have become the fan favorites because of the energy level and the amount of contact that is available at the road courses. You can feel it, you can sense it in the car, you know when you go to Sonoma or Watkins Glen that the contact is going to be there and guys aren’t afraid to mix it up anymore. It will be pretty wild to have a road-course race during the playoffs next year at Charlotte. We’ll see how that plays out. What I like is that there is a road course that will be in the playoffs and that’s going to require the drivers to be more versatile.”

Event:             Zippo 200 at The Glen
Date:               Saturday, August 5, 2017
Location:        Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International
Layout:           2.45-mile road course

Kevin Harvick Notes of Interest

• FIELDS makes its debut with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) as a primary sponsor with driver Kevin Harvick.
• FIELDS is an internationally recognized sports fields and parks master planning, pre-construction, construction, maintenance and operations organization headquartered in the greater Atlanta area. It provides end-to-end or single-source solutions to a wide range of clients who are seeking to address their sports applications needs.
• Harvick is making his fifth of six scheduled XFINITY Series starts in the No. 41 Ford Mustang for SHR in 2017.
• He finished fourth at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March, third at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth in April, second at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway in May, fourth at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta.
• Harvick has one win, one pole, six top-five finishes, seven top-10s and has led 80 laps in seven XFINITY starts at Watkins Glen.
• Harvick won the XFINITY Series race at Watkins Glen in August 2011 by 3.529 seconds over Jeff Burton.
• Harvick won the XFINITY Series pole at The Glen in August 2009 with a lap at 121.998 mph.
• His XFINITY Series career includes 46 wins, 182 top-five finishes, 254 top-10s, 25 poles and 9,444 laps led in 339 starts.
• Harvick will be joined Saturday by SHR teammate Cole Custer in the No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang at The Glen.

Kevin Harvick, Driver No. 41 FIELDS Ford Mustang 

“I can’t thank FIELDS enough for supporting me in NASCAR XFINITY Series visit to Watkins Glen. They came on to help me work on our road-course program this year and we got off to a pretty good start with a win in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Sonoma. When we planned out our year we really wanted to focus on our road-course program knowing that Charlotte Motor Speedway is adding the roval next year in the playoffs. This allows us to do that and also bring on a partner in FIELDS that has worked with us through the Kevin Harvick Foundation and the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation parks that we’ve built over the last few years in Greensboro, North Carolina, in my hometown of Bakersfield, California and our most recent field in Vero Beach, Florida. It’s a chance for us to highlight their work and at the same time work on our program to always be improving another area of our race team.”

Richard Boswell, Crew Chief, No. 41 FIELDS Ford Mustang

You called Kevin Harvick’s race in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Sonoma. Is there anything that you can take from that experience and apply to the XFINITY race at Watkins Glen?

“Yes. I think the biggest thing is in understanding how Kevin communicates when you’re turning left and right. That’s a big help. The FIELDS car helped me at Sonoma in understanding the communication, but also being there for the Cup race on Sunday allowed me to listen to (crew Chief) Rodney (Childers) and Kevin communicate as well. That’s the biggest thing that we’ll take away from our experience in Sonoma.”

How much have you been able to lean on Rodney Childers for information in preparing your XFINITY cars?

“He helps with pretty much anything we need. You know, he’s awesome and he helps a ton. If we have a question he is as helpful as he can be. If he doesn’t have the answer right away he does everything he can to get it for us.”

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Beer Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), will make his 34th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start at a road course this weekend when the NASCAR Cup Series visits Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International for Sunday’s I LOVE NEW YORK 355k at The Glen.

The Bakersfield, California native is one of only two active drivers to claim a NASCAR Cup Series victory at both Watkins Glen International and Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway. Kyle Busch is the other active Cup Series driver to make that claim.

Harvick added his first-career win at Sonoma in June, when he started 12^th, led 24 laps and finished ahead of SHR teammate Clint Bowyer when the race ended under caution. He also won the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West the day before the Cup race.

The 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion scored his lone Cup Series victory at Watkins Glen in 2006, when he started seventh and led 28 of 90 laps and beat current SHR co-owner Tony Stewart to the finish line by 0.892 of a second.

In 2015, Harvick started fourth, led 29 laps and appeared to have the race won with a sizable lead on the final lap. But he ran out of fuel in the final turn and coasted to a third-place finish behind race winner Joey Logano and runner-up Kyle Busch.

Harvick also visited victory lane in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Watkins Glen in August 2007. He started 11^th and turned in a dominant performance after quickly racing his way to the front, leading 49 of 82 laps and beating runner-up Jeff Burton by 3.529 seconds.

Harvick will get additional seat time this weekend on the 2.45-mile road course as he seeks his second win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at The Glen. He will be behind the wheel of the No. 41 FIELDS, Inc. Ford Mustang for SHR on Saturday afternoon.

Twenty-one races into 2017, Harvick sits third in the Cup Series standings and trails leader Martin Truex Jr. by 97 points. He is also tied for seventh in Cup Series playoff points with eight to his credit with five races to go before the start of the 2017 playoffs.

While Harvick and the No. 4 team are virtually a lock to make the 16-driver field for the playoffs, gaining bonus points for additional stage and race wins is now their top priority through the next five races, starting this weekend at Watkins Glen.

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

What is the key to having a good race at Watkins Glen International?

“Watkins Glen is really fast, so the biggest thing there is to get your car good under braking so you can make passes during the race. Usually, where you can gain the most time is in the braking zones.”

Are the road courses still odd-ball races, or do they seem like just another race now?

“They are pretty much just another race now. I think everybody knows that you are going to a road course and you’ve got a lot of different aspects from a driver’s standpoint and the team standpoint that you have to pay attention to.”

What sections or turns are the most challenging at Watkins Glen International?

“It just depends on how your car is handling. I think they can all present problems. As the race goes on, turn one becomes more of an issue because it’s downhill and the brakes start to get worn out. The wheel hop becomes more prevalent as the race goes on. That is the one you’ve got to watch for me during the race, but they all present different challenges.”

How does Watkins Glen International differ from Sonoma Raceway?

“There is a lot of speed difference. At Watkins Glen, you go from turn one, up through the esses and into the inner loop and end up running about 170 to 180 miles per hour down the backstretch. At Sonoma, you’re lucky to get above 100 miles per hour, so speed is definitely the biggest difference.”

Event:               Zippo 200 at The Glen (Round 20 of 33)
Date:                 Aug. 5, 2017
Location:          Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International
Layout:             2.45-mile road course

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

• The Zippo 200 at The Glen will mark Custer’s 25^th career NASCAR XFINITY Series start and his first XFINITY Series start at Watkins Glen International. 
• While the Zippo 200 at The Glen will be Custer’s first XFINITY Series start at Watkins Glen, it will be his fourth overall start at the 2.45-mile road course. In Custer’s three NASCAR K&N Pro Series East starts at The Glen, he earned a pole, two top-five finishes and led 17 laps.
• Custer’s best finish in the 19 XFINITY Series races run this season is fourth, earned June 3 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. It was his 11^th top-10 and fifth top-five and it equaled his career-best finish.
• Custer’s best qualifying effort in the 19 XFINITY Series races run this season is third, earned twice – April 22 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and June 10 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. Custer has 12 top-10 starts and four top-five starts this season.
• Custer has earned four top-five finishes, nine top-10s and has led 29 laps so far in the 2017 XFINITY Series season.
• Custer is second in the XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year standings, 58 points behind leader William Byron.
• Custer has earned six Rookie of the Race awards this season. Rookie of the Race awards are given to the highest-finishing XFINITY Series rookie at each race.
• Custer is sixth in the XFINITY Series driver standings, 233 points behind series leader Elliott Sadler.
• This will be Stewart-Haas Racing’s first XFINITY Series road-course race.

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

Do you enjoy road-course racing?  

“I never really grew up road racing or anything, but when I started doing it I thought it was one of the more fun things we do here throughout the season. I feel like it was something I started getting better at and there was a different level of competition in road-course racing. I’m really looking forward to all of the road courses coming up this season.”

 What will it take to run a successful race at Watkins Glen?

“First, you have to be good as a driver. However, Watkins Glen is one of the tracks where the car comes into play more than most road courses. It’s definitely a fast track and one of the more fun places we go to.” 

This is your first road-course run of the season. Do you feel rusty at all?  

“I’ve been trying to get back into road-course racing a bit. We tested some sports cars at Mid-Ohio, so that helped me get used to the sharp corners and get back in the flow of road courses. Our Haas Automation team has never raced before at a road course, but we definitely have a lot of smart guys that know how to set up a car, so we should be pretty strong this weekend.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

This is the XFINITY team’s first ever road-course race. What are your expectations and how have you been preparing for this moment?  

“I think we have a great shot this weekend as Cole has been successful in the past at road courses. Our team has done a great job this season adapting to new territory and I expect the same to happen this weekend. We’re heading into Watkins Glen with momentum and plan to have another solid top-five finish and hopefully a win.”

Danica Patrick and the No. 10 Aspen Dental Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) enter the weekend at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International on a bit of a hot streak after scoring consecutive top-15 finishes in the past four Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races.

Patrick’s finishes include: 15th at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, 13th at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, 11th at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and 15th at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. The effort marks the first time in Patrick’s NASCAR Cup Series career that she’s finished inside the top-15 in four-consecutive events. And, in each instance, Patrick’s results have marked career-best NASCAR Cup Series finishes at each respective track.

As NASCAR Cup Series teams head to Watkins Glen for Sunday’s I love New York 355k at The Glen, Patrick and the No. 10 Aspen Dental Ford team look to continue that streak of solid results.

In four previous starts at the 2.45-mile road course, Patrick’s best NASCAR Cup Series finish is a 17th-place effort she earned in August 2015. While Patrick has yet to finish inside the top-15 at the track, her average finish at the track isn’t too far off the mark at 19.8.

In addition to Patrick’s stock car experience at Watkins Glen, she’s made six IndyCar Series starts at the track. In that time, Patrick earned one top-10, four top-15s and six top-20 finishes. However, those events were run on the 3.4-mile long course at Watkins Glen and not the 2.45-mile NASCAR configuration.

As Patrick and the No. 10 Aspen Dental Ford team return to Watkins Glen, they’ll be cheered on by a sizable contingent of sponsor guests this weekend.

Aspen Dental Management, Inc. (ADMI), which was founded in Syracuse, New York, is a dental support organization that provides non-clinical business support services to more than 600 independently owned and operated Aspen Dental practices in 36 states. Given ADMI’s close proximity to Watkins Glen International, more than 150 employees will be in attendance at Sunday’s race to cheer on Patrick, including founder and CEO Bob Fontana. Aspen Dental first partnered with Patrick in 2014 and this season the company is the lead sponsor of her No. 10 Ford Fusion for a double-digit slate of races.

On the heels of their recent success and bolstered by the support of the Aspen Dental guests, Patrick and the No. 10 team look to continue the hot streak they’ve been on this weekend at Watkins Glen and take home another top-15 run.

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

You’re entering this weekend following a string of top-15 finishes. Where is your team at right now?  

“I feel like we’re all positive and I feel like we’re communicating well. I guess, honestly, I had a lot of really unfortunate luck earlier in the year and should have had more top-10s or top-15s throughout the year for sure. So, I really knew in my heart that luck was going to shift, it was going to change at some point, it had to because it couldn’t keep going like it was. And I finally feel like it’s doing some of that. (The results have) come from not letting those weekends get to us and staying positive.” 

There are only two road-course races on the NASCAR schedule, but they’re two of the most talked about and anticipated races of the year. Why is that?

“Road-course racing is something we don’t do a lot of and I think they are some fun races to watch because the cars don’t really handle very well. Our cars are like big buses trying to get around a racetrack and we’re sliding around, our brake zones are very long, tires go off and those are things that create passing opportunities.”

Is it a breath of fresh air to turn right and left, or do you have to psyche yourself up a bit to compete on a road course?

“Yeah, I feel like I have to psyche myself up a little bit in my approach about being aggressive and hitting the curbs and the ‘it doesn’t have to be pretty, it just has to be fast’ kind of attitude. But it’s fun. I mean, as long you can come out of the box with that and kind of start that rhythm, it’s easier to maintain all weekend, then.”

Talk about what makes Watkins Glen so difficult and how different it is from Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway.  

“We only go to road courses twice during the season. I don’t think it’s terribly different from Sonoma in the sense that both are road courses and if you can get your car to handle, then things you learn can transfer between both tracks. Even before the repave, Watkins Glen had a lot more grip than Sonoma. You tend to slide around a good bit at Sonoma. As long as the car has good high-speed balance, then that leads to good things at The Glen.”

Talk through the keys to running well at Watkins Glen International.

“The first real tough turn where the car is definitely on edge at Watkins Glen is when you’re coming up the hill to the back straight. It’s critical because it leads onto the back straightaway, so you want to carry as much speed as you can through there. Having a car with a good high-speed balance is really important there. In general, it’s very important that the car turns. It’s kind of the same thing everywhere we go – the car has to turn, but it can’t turn so much that you can’t use it because you’re loose. Then you go through the bus stop and, if you have to wait on the front (of the car) a lot, then you can’t really get back to the throttle. That carries to a very long high-speed right-hand corner, so there’s a lot of exit that you can use if you’re sliding on whatever end that might be. But getting the car to turn through all of that is really what’s going to allow you to be able to attack the throttle.”

What is it about the road courses that you enjoy?

“I’m very used to racing on road courses. That’s how I grew up in go-karting. It’s what I did in Europe when I raced and it’s what IndyCar Racing really became before I left. There were three IndyCar road-course races when I started and, by the end, the majority of the races were on road courses – I think it was eight or nine races. So, I’m super familiar and super comfortable on road courses, but jumping into a stock car on a road course does feel a lot different than a lot of the other cars I’ve driven before on a road course. It still makes for great races because the braking zones are longer in stock cars, which allows more opportunities for passing.”

What is the hardest part about road racing?

“The hardest part of road racing is just putting a whole lap together. The hardest part of road racing is just nailing every corner and doing it consistently when it counts.”

If you are good at Sonoma, can you be good at Watkins Glen?

“Probably. I think these cars are such big, heavy cars, the difference between Sonoma and Watkins Glen is not that big of a deal. It still has corners and has to go left and right and then go quickly and turn quickly and get the power down quickly and do things it’s not used to doing on a normal, everyday weekend. There should be plenty of carryover from road course to road course. If you are struggling with rear-grip issues, you probably are going to not be penalized as much at Watkins Glen as you are Sonoma.”

Clint Bowyer knows the reason why NASCAR’s road-course racing has gained in popularity in recent years. It’s the same reason the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series has added another road-course race to its schedule next year and could add even more in the future.

“Road-course racing is just an emotional roller coaster that you just flat don’t know the outcome of until that rag finally falls,” said Bowyer, who grew up racing on the dirt tracks of Kansas but has become one of the sport’s better road-course aces. “It’s just a hell of a show for the fans, the television audience and even the drivers. Man, they’re just so difficult. They’re so out of the ordinary. There are so many opportunities. That’s the thing about a road course, that there are not a lot of opportunities to pass, but there are a lot of opportunities. If somebody makes a mistake, like if you catch pit road as a caution’s coming out, there are just so many things to capitalize on one of those road courses.”

For years, Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway and Watkins Glen (N.Y) International have been the only two road courses on the Cup Series schedule. But in 2018, Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway will run its September race on its “roval” – a new 13-turn, 2.4-mile road course incorporating part of the infield and all but 400 feet of Charlotte’s 1.5-mile oval on which drivers will race 500 kilometers over 130 laps.

How serious is the sport taking to road-course racing? The Charlotte race marks the first NASCAR road-course race in the track’s 58-year history and will serve as the final race in Round 1 of the 2018 playoffs – the first time the 14-year-old playoff format includes a road course.

That’s good news for Bowyer, whose road-course statistics are impressive. He finished second at Sonoma in June behind Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) teammate Kevin Harvick. It marked the 23rd road-course start of his Cup Series career. That record includes a victory, eight top-five finishes and 13 top-10s.

He’ll get his chance to improve upon those stats this weekend when the Cup Series visits Watkins Glen for the final road-course race of the season. Historically, Bowyer hasn’t enjoyed the success at Watkins Glen that he has at Sonoma. He’s earned one top-five and four top-10s on the historic Upstate New York track near the southern tip of Seneca Lake that has hosted everything from the Formula One United States Grand Prix for 20 years to a 1973 rock concert that drew more than 600,000.

Bowyer said Sonoma success doesn’t equate to similar success at Watkins Glen because the tracks aren’t very similar beyond the fact both are road courses.

“You are way more at ease at Sonoma,” he said. “It’s a finesse, rear-grip, take-care-of-your-tires, type of track. I think it is a much more technical track. When you go to Watkins Glen, it’s a ton of fun but it’s a whole different beast. It’s wide-open. It’s balls-to-the-wall. You have to be extremely good on braking and have a fast racecar. Both of them are a ton of fun and so unique. That is the thing. We race and chase each other in circles non-stop. It is refreshing to have a break like this when we come to these road courses.”

Bowyer has plenty to accomplish this weekend when his Ford Fusion carries the Five Star Urgent Care paint scheme in practice Saturday and qualifying and racing Sunday. He arrives in New York 17th in the 16-driver playoffs, just 17 points behind Matt Kenseth, who holds the final playoff position. A victory automatically earns Bowyer a spot in the playoffs that begin in just five races. If he doesn’t win, he knows every point matters as the regular season draws to a close.

With all that on the line, the Watkins Glen race should be just like Bowyer likes his racing – an emotional roller coaster.

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Five Star Urgent Care Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What are some more of the differences between Watkins Glen and Sonoma road courses?

“The consequences just seem far greater at Watkins Glen than they are at Sonoma. If you hit at Sonoma, it’s like, ‘Man that hurt.’ You hit at Watkins Glen, you might be telling ’em about it a couple days later when it comes back to you.”

Event:               U.S. Cellular 250 presented by American Ethanol (Round 19 of 33)
Date:                 July 29, 2017
Location:          Iowa Speedway in Newton
Layout:             .875-mile oval

Cole Custer Notes of Interest 

• The U.S. Cellular 250 presented by American Ethanol will mark Cole Custer’s 24^th career NASCAR XFINITY Series start and his second XFINITY Series start at Iowa Speedway in Newton. 
• In Custer’s first XFINITY Series start at Iowa five weeks ago, he was running seventh until a scheduled green-flag pit stop on lap 219. While Custer was on pit road, the caution came out, putting him one lap down in 24^th with 20 laps to go. 
• While the S. Cellular 250 will be Custer’s second XFINITY Series start at Iowa, it will be his ninth overall start at the .875-mile oval. Custer has three NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts and four NASCAR K&N Pro Series starts at Iowa.
• Custer scored his first career Pro Series East victory Aug. 2, 2013 at Iowa from the pole. At 15 years, 6 months and 10 days, he became the youngest winner in Pro Series history. In addition to breaking Dylan Kwasniewski’s record for youngest race winner by nearly six months, Custer also became the first driver to lead every lap (150) in the combination East/West race.
• Custer’s best Truck Series finish at Iowa is second, earned in 2016. Custer finished .431 of a second behind race-winner William Byron, who he’s now competing with for XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year honors.
• Custer has a win, a pole, four top-fives, six top-10s and has led 237 laps in his eight career starts at Iowa.
• Custer’s best finish in the 19 XFINITY Series races run this season is fourth, earned in the 11^th race of the year June 3 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. It was his 10^th top-10 and fourth top-five and it equaled his career-best finish in 23 career XFINITY Series starts.
• Custer is second in the XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year standings, 65 points behind leader William Byron.
• Custer is sixth in the NASCAR XFINITY Series driver standings, 230 points behind series leader Elliot Sadler.
• Custer has earned five Rookie of the Race awards this season. Rookie of the Race awards are given to the highest-finishing XFINITY Series rookie at each race.
• Custer has been the highest-finishing XFINITY Series regular driver in four races this season – Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, Dover, Pocono (Pa.) Raceway and Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.
• Custer’s best qualifying effort in the 19 XFINITY Series races run this season is third, earned in the seventh race of the year April 22 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Custer has 11 top-10 starts and three top-five starts this season.
• In 23 XFINITY Series starts, 42 Camping World Truck Series starts and 29 K&N Pro Series starts since 2015, Custer has five wins, six poles, 14 top-five finishes, 23 top-10s and 919 laps led at tracks currently on the NASCAR circuit that are approximately a mile in length or shorter.
• Custer has earned three top-five finishes, eight top-10s and has led 29 laps so far in the 2017 XFINITY Series season.

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

Do you feel as if you’ve got something to prove in the XFINITY Series at Iowa after bad luck plagued your weekend in June?

 “Yeah. Iowa is a track that I’ve had great success at, so I want to mirror that in the XFINITY Series. Our Haas Automation Ford Mustang ran really well there in practice and I think we’ve learned a lot there since going to New Hampshire and Iowa. I mean, we’ve had fast cars there in the past and the team has been exceeding expectations this season.”

What will it take to pull off your second win at Iowa?

“We were just too tight in our first try at Iowa. Just getting the car to turn better and drive off the turns is the biggest thing. Then, being there at the end is always the most important part. I feel like I have a lot more confidence at the short tracks and we aren’t competing against Cup guys, so hopefully we can execute well this time and pull off a win.” 

Describe the feeling of getting your first win and pole at Iowa Speedway while leading all 150 laps to become the youngest winner in Pro Series history? 

“It was definitely a day I’ll remember. I can’t explain how amazing it felt. Iowa is a special place for our Haas Automation race team. I feel like that win gave me a lot of confidence because it was my first in the K&N Series and I always look forward to coming back. I just love the track. The fans are awesome and it was always one of my favorite tracks growing up. I can’t believe I got to go there and go to victory lane.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

Despite bad luck at Iowa earlier in June, do you feel that the team had a solid game plan to bring the Haas Automation Mustang to victory lane? If not, what would you do differently?  

“We had a really good car in practice the first Iowa race. We got a flat tire during our first qualifying run, which put us starting in the rear for the race. We started the race too tight and struggled to get ahead on our setup. Going back this weekend, we have a better understanding of how the track changes from practice to race. I don’t anticipate it to be as big of a swing this time because it is a day race, where the last race was run at night. Cole has a good track record in Iowa and I feel certain we are bringing back a better Haas Automation Ford Mustang than we had the previous race.”

Kurt Busch seems to like Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. And since he’s won there three times, for three different owners, he’s hoping he can score victory number four while driving the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR).

Busch first won at Pocono in July 2005 driving for Roush Fenway Racing, leading 131 of 203 laps after starting second. He then dominated in August 2007 driving for Roger Penske. He started second again but led 175 of 200 laps en route to victory at the 2.5-mile track known as the “Tricky Triangle.” Both those races were 500 miles in length.

In June 2016, driving for SHR, he started ninth and led 32 of 160 laps of the now 400-mile race to score his third Pocono victory.

Perhaps Busch’s success is tied to the track’s unique design. The triangular layout was designed by two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Rodger Ward and remains unlike any other track in the world with three different corners each modeled after a different track.

Turn one, which is banked at 14 degrees, is modeled after the legendary Trenton (N.J.) Speedway. Turn two, banked at eight degrees, is a nod to the turns at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. And turn three, banked at six degrees, is modeled after the corners at The Milwaukee Mile.

Busch’s first-ever NASCAR victory came on July 1, 2000 at Milwaukee when he started on the pole and led 156 of 200 laps to win the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Former Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Greg Biffle was third, while a young Jamie McMurray finished 31^st. Joe Ruttman, who is the brother of Troy Ruttman, the 1952 Indianapolis 500 winner, finished 24^th. Troy Ruttman competed against Ward 10 times in the Indianapolis 500 during the 1950s and 1960s.

The No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Ford Fusion will again be serviced by crew chief Tony Gibson, who won at Pocono in June 1992 with Alan Kulwicki and in July 1998 with Jeff Gordon. He served as car chief during both events. He was not on the pit box last June when Busch scored the victory at Pocono, but lead race engineer Johnny Klausmeier called the shots. Both he and Gibson will be back for this go-around with Gibson back as crew chief.

Both Busch and Gibson are hoping that they can score another victory in the Overton’s 400 Sunday to gain more points as just five races remain after Pocono until the NASCAR playoffs begin.

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

You’ve won three times at Pocono, but the 2007 win was so dominant. Can you describe that race?

“The win in 2007 with Penske Racing – that was the fastest car that I’ve ever driven. That car would turn, stick, drive down the straightaway – that car did everything. It didn’t have a single flaw. I knew how good that car was on the first lap of the race. I remember telling myself, ‘Don’t screw this up.’ I ran the rest of the race more nervous than I had in years prior. I’ve never dominated a race like that. We led 175 of 200 laps. That was, by far, the best car I have ever driven. It was a great race to show the balance of that team and the strength of where we were at that point. I think the 25 laps that we didn’t lead were from a bad pit stop at one point. My first win at Pocono in 2005 was pretty great, too. It’s fun to win at a racetrack that is so unique because of how different that track is compared to all the other oval tracks. Pocono is a little bit like Darlington in that all the corners are different, so you have to manage them the best that you can and not be perfect in one corner versus another.”

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you go to Pocono?

“How unique the place is. You drive in through the Tunnel Turn and that corner to me is one of the most unique corners of all the tracks that we go to. When you go to Pocono, the first thing you really think of is compromise – you have to juggle all three corners being different. It’s called the Tricky Triangle for a reason.”

Of the three turns, which is the most important to you and why? 

“It’s weird, I’ve had winning cars there a few different times and turn two always feels the best when my car has a chance to go to victory lane. But, I think turn three, if you are able to pass cars and maneuver around them, you’ve got to get a good run off turn three to be ready to pass them in turn one. All of them are important. You can’t exclude one from another.”

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), will make his 34th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway in Sunday’s Overton’s 400. Harvick has won on short tracks, intermediate tracks, road courses and superspeedways, but it’s Pocono’s unique three-turn circuit that continues to leave him puzzled.

The “Tricky Triangle” is one of only three racetracks where Harvick has yet to record a NASCAR Cup Series win. Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth and Kentucky Speedway in Sparta are the other two.

Harvick is hoping it is the fuel mileage, engine efficiency and reliability delivered under the hood by Mobil 1 that should prove to be the biggest advantage for his team at the demanding three-turn, 2.5-mile, triangular racetrack. Mobil 1 touches every major moving part in SHR’s cars and that translates to better lap times.

After all, the last time Harvick drove a Ford Fusion with Mobil 1 on the hood, he raced his way to victory at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway – scoring his first Cup Series victory in 19 starts at the 1.99-mile road course.

The Bakersfield, California, native has run well at Pocono, scoring nine top-five finishes and 14 top-10s in his 33 career Cup Series starts, but has yet to reach victory lane in NASCAR’s top series. He seems to be getting close, however, as he’s scored runner-up finishes in three of his last six Cup Series starts at Pocono.

In August 2014, Harvick started sixth, led five laps and finished second to Dale Earnhardt Jr. by .228 of a second. Last June, he started fifth, led 39 laps and was runner-up to Martin Truex Jr. by 1.346 seconds.

In his most recent attempt, Harvick started 12^th and nearly pulled off the victory in the closing laps with a heavily damaged motor after missing a shift on a late-race restart. He finished just .139 of a second behind race-winner Ryan Blaney.

Harvick does have a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory at Pocono, scoring the win from the pole position while driving for his own team on Aug. 7, 2011. He led 44 of 53 laps to beat Kyle Busch to the finish line by 1.140 seconds.

Twenty races into 2017, Harvick sits third in the Cup Series standings and trails leader Martin Truex Jr. by 97 points. He is also tied for sixth in Cup Series playoff points with eight to his credit with six races to go before the start of the 2017 playoffs.

While Harvick and the No. 4 team are virtually a lock to make the 16-driver field for the playoffs, gaining bonus points for additional stage and race wins is now their top priority through the next six races, starting this weekend at Pocono.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Fusion:

Does having qualifying on the same day as the race change anything for you?

“It does change the approach just because it is an impound race. All of the qualifying stuff that we have in our notebook is going to be different because it’ll be hard to achieve the balance that you normally are looking for on a race weekend for a qualifying setup – to run as fast as you can with every tool in the toolbox – to make the car handle. That’ll be interesting. We’ve done that at Charlotte and it went OK for us. I think, as you look at this race, it’s definitely had everybody thinking how you were going to get the balance right, and what you need to do from a race standpoint, to just qualifying. It’s definitely going to be different, but I like the schedule. For me, I know, sitting around for some of these night races, you have to get ready to race. But having these qualifying sessions will give everyone something to do from a competitor’s standpoint and also from a fan standpoint, to give them cars to see on the racetrack. I think the schedule is very intriguing and I’m excited to see how it works out.”

What makes coming to Pocono fun?

“When you come to Pocono, everything is fun. They make their events fun. It’s fun from the time you go into the racetrack. For a number of years, it was like, ‘Man, I have to go to Pocono this week.’ Then I had Keelan (son) and there is a ton to do. DeLana (wife) likes to bring Keelan to the racetrack, the waterparks, and we like to play golf, so this has definitely become one of our go-to events for the family.”

What was it like to be so close to winning at Pocono in June?

“The June Pocono race was probably our best race weekend we’ve had all year from start to finish – I think the speed of the car and just the flow of everything that had happened this year. We’ve had so much change and so much going on. Luckily, we have the same group of people but, with the switch to Ford, we’ve just now been to all the racetracks for the first time. So, we are really just trying to learn the new rules package, the new aero package, the new manufacturer and everything that goes with that. Every time we’ve been to a racetrack, it hasn’t been exactly smooth just for the fact that we’ve had to change so much in order to get where you want to be. We usually get where we want to be by the end of the weekend, but it’s been a lot of work for everybody to get there. But, Pocono was one of those places that we came to and the weekend was smooth. I think the way the circumstances kind of worked out there toward the end of the race, we had to pass quite a few cars and just ran out of time there. Ryan (Blaney) didn’t make any mistakes at the end. It was a good race and I think I’ve finished second three times at Pocono since we came to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014. It was a track that I was never really that competitive at while I was at Richard Childers Racing. So, having those chances to win is a lot of fun because it’s a racetrack that I hadn’t had a lot of success at early in my career. To come back and be that competitive and to feel that we could win at any moment because we’ve run well enough at all of them, it’d be nice to check this one off the remaining list of three.”