DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Though the distinct roar of the NASCAR Garage 56 Chevrolet has earned global attention at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it was NASCAR’s over-the-wall athletes who took center stage — and a victory — on Tuesday.
The Hendrick Motorsports pit crew topped 16 competitors in the GTE class to win the Pit Stop Challenge, despite being the only team competing with a manual jack. The five-person crew changed four Goodyear Eagle tires in 10.364 seconds, edging Northwest AMR by 0.12 seconds. They finished fifth overall, just 0.3 seconds behind the top-finishing team.
“It was actually our fastest stop of the day, so I would say I was surprised but also very pleased,” said Hendrick Motorsports Pit Crew Coach Evan Kureczka. “You can tell the fans were very impressed with the fact that we were using a jack to jack the car up. You could see the smiles on their faces, we put on a great show for the fans.”
Even more impressive is the fact it was the team’s first time working together in a competition setting.
“Over the past eight months, we’ve put this team together, and we’ve rolled with them the entire time and knew this is what we were going to bring to Le Mans, but we had to get them up to speed together,” Kureczka said.
The crew includes Dawson Backus (front tire changer), Mike Moss (rear tire changer), Donovan Williams (jackman), Cody French (front tire carrier) and Jarius Morehead (rear tire carrier). All five compete for Hendrick Motorsports in the NASCAR Cup Series.
“This is a special moment to be able to represent Hendrick Motorsports, represent our families, America and NASCAR as a whole,” said Williams, the only jackman competing in the competition. “We just relied on our training, and it came into place instinctively. I think we all just went out there and performed and didn’t think too much.
“That’s what’s special about sports — we all come from athletic backgrounds and were able to lean on that when you talk about canceling out the crowd, locking in and being in the moment. It was a special moment, and we were able to capitalize.”
The Garage 56 project is a partnership between NASCAR, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear — the winningest team, manufacturer and tire in the sport’s 75-year history. The Garage 56 Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will be driven by 2009 F1 world champion Jenson Button, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and two-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Mike Rockenfeller in this weekend’s 100th anniversary running of the world-famous endurance race.
With a quarter of the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season officially in the books, the Mod Squad shifts its focus to Seekonk Speedway this Saturday night for the running of the Seekonk 150.
The Seekonk 150 marks a return for the series to Seekonk Speedway after last visiting the track in 2019. It marks the 11th visit by the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour to the third-mile asphalt oval in Massachusetts.
Seekonk Speedway first welcomed the series in 1987, with Reggie Ruggiero outlasting Jimmy Spencer to secure the victory. The series didn’t return again until 2000, when Jerry Marquis visited Victory Lane. Other Tour winners at the track include Chris Kopec, Ed Flemke Jr., Chuck Hossfeld, Eric Beers, Timmy Solomito, Justin Bonsignore and two-time Seekonk winner Doug Coby.
Tickets to Saturday’s Seekonk 150 are available here. Below is everything you need to know about the sixth race of the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season.
Seekonk 150 at Seekonk Speedway
What to watch for:
With five races now in the rearview for the stars of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, the battle at the top of the series standings is between Ron Silk and Justin Bonsignore.
Silk, who won the opening race of the season at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway, leads the standings by three points ahead of Bonsingore, who triumphed in Race 4 at New York’s Riverhead Raceway.
Both should be considered contenders Saturday when the Whelen Modified Tour makes its return to Seekonk for the first time since 2019.
Doug Coby is also likely to be among the frontrunners Saturday. The Tommy Baldwin Racing driver is the most recent Tour winner at Seekonk and already has a victory this year, which came at New Hampshire’s Monadnock Speedway last month.
Matt Hirschman is still riding a wave of momentum following his victory in the most recent Tour event at New Hampshire’s Lee USA Speedway. He led laps in 2019 at Seekonk and will no doubt be in the mix when the green flag waves Saturday night.
Austin Beers will also be among those to watch Saturday. His father Eric Beers won his first Whelen Modified Tour race at Seekonk in 2005, and Austin would love to join his father as a Tour winner at the track.
Defending Tour champion Jon McKennedy will chase his first victory of the season Saturday at Seekonk alongside fellow 2022 race winners Anthony Nocella and Craig Lutz. One driver, Tommy Wanick, will be making his Whelen Modified Tour debut Saturday night.
Schedule: Saturday, June 10 … Final practice from 3 to 4 p.m. ET … Qualifying at 5:30 p.m. ET … Local racing at 6 p.m. ET … Seekonk 150 at 8 p.m. ET.
Qualifying: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the Seekonk 150 is limited to 28 starters including Provisional Positions.
Tire allotment: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is eight (8) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR Officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event. The tire change rule is zero (0) tires, any position.
A 26th-place finish in Sunday’s race at World Wide Technology Raceway was not the result Alex Bowman and the No. 48 team wanted. However, with Bowman back full time following an injury, the team appears close to a breakthrough via it’s pit-road acumen — especially given Sunday’s performance.
Spearheaded by Donnie Tasser (front changer), Andrew Bridgeforth (rear changer), Scott Riddle (tire carrier), Allen Holman (jackman) and Jacob Conley (fueler), the No. 48 team put on a stellar showing reminiscent of Richmond two months earlier. Let’s take a look.
In terms of average four-tire stop, Bowman’s No. 48 crew clocked out an average time of 9.743 seconds at Gateway, good enough for first on the year among all races. In fact, the mark stands out as the only time under 10 seconds for the duration of a race.
The only average four-tire stop time somewhat close is Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet. The No. 24 team established a swift pace in its own right via a 10.008-second average time during the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Although Sunday’s on-track finish might not have been a preferable one, Bowman will look to capitalize on any sort of momentum. And if pit-road statistics are an indicator, perhaps the remedy will start from the pit box.
After all, each Hendrick Motorsports team — Bowman’s included — has shown a knack for thriving on brisk pit-road stops.
See below to analyze additional pit-road statistics through last weekend’s race at Gateway, courtesy of Racing Insights.
Held in honor of the late Jack Ingram, a three-time NASCAR Late Model Sportsman champion and two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series champion, the event will feature some of the Southeast’s best Late Model Stock Car competitors battling for 111 laps and a $5,011 top prize.
A strong field is again expected to head to Hickory Motor Speedway to pursue a victory on Saturday night, including weekly stars like defending track champion Landon Huffman, Tyler Matthews and Kade Brown, among others.
Below is everything you need to know about the 2023 Jack Ingram Memorial at Hickory Motor Speedway.
Scenes from the Jack Ingram Memorial at North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway on June 11, 2022. (Photo: Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)
What TV channel is the Jack Ingram Memorial at Hickory Motor Speedway on in 2023?
All feature racing action from the 2023 Jack Ingram Memorial at Hickory Motor Speedway can be viewed live on FloRacing, the streaming home of all NASCAR Roots properties.
The race will not be shown on a television network.
Below is the complete schedule for coverage on FloRacing.
This year’s event at Hickory is scheduled for Saturday, June 10. Below is the complete race-day schedule for the 2023 Jack Ingram Memorial.
(All times ET)
8 a.m.
Sign In Begins
9:45 a.m.
Pit Gates Open
10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Optional Early Practice
10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Late Model Pre-Tech Inspection
2 – 4:15 p.m.
Practice
5 p.m.
Qualifying
7 p.m.
Feature Racing
Josh Berry and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in Victory Lane after Berry’s victory in the Jack Ingram Memorial at North Carolina’s Hickory Motor Speedway on June 11, 2022. (Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)
Entry list
A complete entry list for the Jack Ingram Memorial has not been released by track officials, but the event is expected to feature some of the top Late Model Stock Car racers from across the Southeast.
That includes defending Hickory track champion Landon Huffman, who has one victory this season at the historic 0.363-mile asphalt oval.
Kade Brown, who captured the track championship at South Carolina’s Florence Motor Speedway last season, is also expected to be in action, as well as current Hickory championship leader Tyler Matthews.
Berlin Raceway has always been a special place for Erik Jones.
The two-time Southern 500 winner not only obtained his lone ARCA Menards Series triumph at the facility in 2013, but he has also claimed two consecutive victories in the Battle at Berlin, one of the track’s crown-jewel races of each season.
On Wednesday evening, Jones will look to claim his first victory in Berlin’s prestigious Money in the Bank 150, which would carry extra significance for the NASCAR Cup Series veteran as he gets more acclimated to overseeing his own Super Late Model.
“This is still a pretty new car for me,” Jones said. “We built it over the offseason, and [Wednesday will] be the second start on it for us, so I’m looking forward to learning more about it and getting it better. This is a nice car and one that I’ve been excited to get racing. It’s going to be a strong field, and I’ll get to race against a lot of guys that I raced with years ago.”
Jones’ initial rise through the Super Late Model ranks was crucial toward his eventually earning a full-time Cup Series ride.
After accumulating several wins as a teenager during the early 2010s, Jones caught the attention of the motorsports community in the 2012 Snowball Derby with an efficient performance that saw him lead a race-high 124 laps and win against drivers like Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Grant Enfinger, John Hunter Nemechek and many more.
Within a year, Jones found himself in a driver development deal with Kyle Busch Motorsports, all while he proceeded to win numerous other prestigious Super Late Model events, including another Snowball Derby in 2013 and three consecutive Winchester 400s from 2013-15.
All the track time Jones recorded when he was younger helped him find a competitive rhythm in Super Late Models that eventually carried over into the Cup Series. But he also credited his success in the discipline to the fast cars prepared by the teams with which he’s competed.
Now that race weekends for the Cup Series are more condensed following the COVID-19 pandemic, Jones has more freedom to participate in Super Late Model events of his choosing. Transitioning back into Super Late Models has not been easy for Jones, who is impressed by the competitive depth prevalent in the discipline today.
“It’s been a challenge getting back into [Super Late Models],” Jones said. “The cars have changed a lot with so many different rules compared to when I first started racing. Everybody now has pretty good stuff, but I’ve been figuring things out. We ran a few races last year and won one of those, so I want to keep doing some more going forward.”
In the early 2010s, Erik Jones was one of the most efficient Super Late Model drivers in the country with two Snowball Derby wins and three Winchester 400 victories. (Photo: NASCAR)
Among the races Jones competed in last year included the Money in the Bank 150 and the Battle at Berlin, scoring finishes of 10th and third, respectively.
Jones anticipated a learning curve with his own Super Late Model in both of Berlin’s crown jewel events. The storied facility always posed a challenge for Jones when he was younger because of its design and the loyal group of competitors that race there every weekend.
“[Berlin] is by far one of the most unique places I’ve ever raced on as far as ovals go,” Jones said. “It has a unique shape. The surface is abrasive and slick, so it never has a lot of grip. You’re running down on the apron off [Turn] 4 and [Turns 1 and 2] are a big sweeping turn where you have to focus on your exit.
“It’s tough, and the local guys there are always hard to beat.”
Headlining the talented group of track regulars Jones will have to contest with Wednesday is defending track champion Evan Shotko, who also won the most recent edition of the Battle at Berlin.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular Carson Hocevar is also on the preliminary entry list; he’s a Berlin track champion and two-time Money in the Bank 150 winner. Other notable names include Super Late Model veteran Bubba Pollard, along with Sean Hingorani, Gio Ruggiero and Kyle Busch’s Cup Series spotter Derek Kneeland.
A talented field of cars is only one of Jones’ worries, as he will have to strike a perfect balance between being conservative and aggressive with his tires over 150 laps so he can be in contention for a win at the end of the night.
Jones admittedly prefers longer Super Late Model events due to all the different strategy aspects associated with them, but he plans to be more aggressive in Wednesday’s Money in the Bank 150 compared to last year.
“The [Battle at Berlin] is definitely more of an endurance race,” Jones said. “You’re saving a lot more in that race just trying to get to the end. The track also changes a lot from day to night, whereas [the Money in the Bank 150] is a pretty quick race.
“It goes by quick, so you’ve got to push a little bit harder.”
With two Battle at Berlin victories on his resume, Erik Jones will chase his first Money in the Bank 150 victory with his own car. (Photo: Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)
With plenty of experience on his side in both short tracks and NASCAR, Jones has high aspirations for his Super Late Model program and expects to take another step forward during the Money in the Bank 150.
Jones is enjoying every moment of being a team owner in the discipline that helped define him as a driver. He admitted taking home a checkered flag in front of his home crowd in his own car would be a highlight in a career already filled with numerous accomplishments.
“[Winning] would be cool for me since this is my car,” Jones said. “Any time you can win a Super race now is a great feeling. They are harder to win than ever with the fields being so tight. For me, winning with my own car and my own guys would be one I’d remember for a long time.”
Following the Money in the Bank 150, Jones plans to take his car to the Slinger Nationals before heading back to Michigan in August for the Battle at Berlin, where he will look to tally another victory at one of his favorite tracks.
NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition Elton Sawyer told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio during his weekly appearance that the sanctioning body will not suspend or penalize Austin Cindric for Sunday’s wreck with Austin Dillon.
Cindric’s No. 2 Team Penske Ford connected with the right rear of Dillon’s No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet late in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Worldwide Technology Raceway while battling for 12th place. The contact sent Dillon into the No. 47 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Cindric would finish 13th in the race, with Dillon and Stenhouse slipping to 31st and 32nd, respectively.
“We didn’t see anything that really would rise to a level that would be a suspension or a penalty,” Sawyer said. “It looked like hard racing. One car coming up a little bit and another car going down. …
“As we said last week, we take these incidents very seriously when we see cars that are turned head-on into another car or head-on into the wall. I spent a lot of time (Monday) looking at that, looking at all the data, looking at TV footage and just deemed this one really hard racing.”
The on-track incident received extra scrutiny Monday, especially following NASCAR’s one-race suspension of Chase Elliott the week prior. The sanctioning body ruled Elliott intentionally wrecked Denny Hamlin at Charlotte Motor Speedway, sitting the Hendrick Motorsports driver for one week as a result.
Dillon had called for a similar penalty on Cindric after being checked and released from the infield care center, saying: “I was wrecked intentionally by (Cindric), hooked right … he better be suspended next week.”
Cindric disagreed with Dillon’s assessment, according to the Team Penske driver’s social media post:
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is 100 years old. The race is always popular but this year there will not be a spare seat in the house as the automotive world celebrates its glittering anniversary.
For this milestone event, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) has the privilege of welcoming one of the biggest superstars in the history of world sport to France. LeBron James, the legendary American basketball player, business innovator and philanthropist will lower the French flag to unleash the 62-strong field.
Since 1949, the role of race starter has often been given to a personality from the world of politics, sport, film or industry. Previous official starters include Brad Pitt (2016), Rafael Nadal (2018), Alain Delon (1996), French president Georges Pompidou (1972) and Steve McQueen (1971).
Pierre Fillon, Automobile Club de l’Ouest president: “I am thrilled to welcome LeBron James to the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary and thank him most sincerely for accepting our invitation. The 24 Hours of Le Mans is a world-renowned event that, in the past, has welcomed some great names from various fields. LeBron James is a true sporting legend whose list of achievements and records commands respect and admiration. We are looking forward to introducing him to the unique Le Mans atmosphere and the excitement generated by the Centenary of the world’s greatest endurance race.”
LeBron James: “There’s nothing like seeing and experiencing sports at their highest level. It’s an honor for me to be part of this historic moment in motorsports and help celebrate the Centenary of one of the biggest sporting events in the world. I look forward to kicking off this iconic race and watching its world-class drivers compete on Le Mans’ global stage.”
Fifteen races into his tenure at Richard Childress Racing, Kyle Busch is once again a favorite for the NASCAR Cup Series championship.
The two-time title winner surged to his third victory of the 2023 campaign Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway, dominating the race with 121 laps led after winning his first pole with RCR.
Busch’s win totals had slowed relative to his historic pace over the past three seasons, scoring no more than two victories a year since 2020. The last time Busch won at least three races in a season was 2019 — a five-win campaign that resulted in his second Cup Series championship.
Just past the midway point of the 2023 regular season, there’s no indication Busch and the No. 8 team will slow down soon. Together, they’ve garnered the second-most playoff points so far this season, just behind William Byron, who’s also scored three wins this year.
But while Byron’s success feels like an arrival, Busch’s feels like a reminder.
While Busch was never far from Victory Lane, other drivers’ successes stole the spotlight away from him. Now, we’re relearning why Busch is one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers. The 38-year-old now has 228 wins across NASCAR’s three national series, with Sunday marking his 63rd in the Cup Series.
Credit should also be distributed to crew chief Randall Burnett. Burnett has overseen more wins in the Next Gen car than any other crew chief, thanks to his three additional wins with Tyler Reddick piloting the No. 8 car in 2022.
But for as well as Busch and Burnett have run — three wins, four top fives and eight top 10s in 15 starts — they feel the best is yet to come.
“I think we’ve got a lot of potential,” Burnett said. “I think we’ve got a lot to clean up, too, and we talk about it repeatedly. We’ve had some really fast cars and taken ourselves out of races with some mistakes and things like that. Me and Kyle and our whole group have talked about it, and we know we’ve all got to clean it up on our end, especially if we’re going to compete for the championship.”
The past six races have produced two victories and four top-10 finishes, but the other two results were 21st at Dover, three laps down after a speeding penalty, and a DNF at Kansas after a crash.
“We’ve had some really good runs,” Busch said. “We’ve had three wins, obviously, which is great. But we’ve also had some of the dismal days as well. We’ve had peaks and valleys so far this year. We just got to find the greater plains, if you will, and level this thing out a little bit.”
But a new environment has served Busch well — and according to Burnett, he’s serving the environment well, too.
“Really proud of this 8 bunch. They dig in hard,” Burnett said. “Great group of guys, great group of racers, and Kyle has fit right in with them. He’s done a great job of adapting over here and lent plenty of insight on his side to how to make things better as well, so we’re all working together towards that.”
Thomas Hatcher, the front tire changer for the No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet, was injured on pit road during Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway.
Hatcher, who was changing tires for driver Erik Jones, got tangled up with another crew member and fell to the ground during a sequence of pit stops at Lap 180. A NASCAR spokesperson confirmed Hatcher was transported to an area medical facility and was awake and alert.
Houston Stamper, the front tire changer for the No. 45 Toyota, filled in after the 23XI Racing entry crashed out of competition.
MONDAY UPDATE: Hatcher was treated and released from St. Louis University Hospital on Sunday night, according to the team.
UPDATE: Thomas Hatcher, front tire changer on the No. 43 team who was injured on pit road in yesterday’s @NASCAR Cup Series race, was treated and released from St. Louis University Hospital last night. We are relieved he is resting and recovering at home in NC. pic.twitter.com/EtQ05EikSn
— LEGACY MOTOR CLUB (@LegacyMotorclub) June 5, 2023
Shortly after Legacy announced Hatcher had been released from the hospital, Joe Gibbs Racing stated the following:
“Hatcher, who is a member of JGR’s pit crew department, was serving as the front tire changer on the No. 43 car for Legacy Motor Club when he was injured during a stop. After an initial evaluation in the Infield Care Center at the track he was transported to the hospital for further testing. Hatcher has been cleared and has returned home. He will undergo the NASCAR concussion protocol this week and his status for this week will be updated.”
