Posted on by Staff Report

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Ask almost any driver in the NASCAR garage today to name some of the racers they wanted to emulate coming up through the racing circuit, and it doesn’t take long for this Roush racer to come up: Mark Martin.

Known now for his encyclopedic memory of the setups his teams ran as far back as the early 80s and his affinity for rap music and lifting heavy weights, Martin built a NASCAR career on winning races (96 of them in the top three NASCAR national series), on being completely in tune with his car and for managing his tires in such a way that his late-race charges to the front of the field became the stuff of legend.

Ask almost any driver in the NASCAR garage today to name some of the racers they most wanted to emulate when it came to earning the respect of their peers, and it doesn’t take long for this Roush racer to come up: Jeff Burton.

RELATED: Check out Mark, Mamba & The Mayor

Now an analyst for NBC Sports, Burton built his career with plenty of on-track success, but also on having the reputation for being one of the most trusted and honest racers in the garage. In an era where drivers policed themselves among the garage (1990s specifically), Burton earned one of the most famous nicknames ever in NASCAR — The Mayor.

These two NASCAR legends and former Roush teammates are teaming up again. Martin and Burton, along with host Mamba Smith, are launching a podcast on the NASCAR Digital network — Mark, Mamba & The Mayor. Listen to a snippet of the first episode below.

Scm Mark Mamba Themayor Mark 17

The biweekly podcast will feature these racers swapping stories of their time at NASCAR’s top level in the 1990s, sharing previously unheard stories from their time behind the wheel and in the garage. Smith, who also appears weekly on Backseat Drivers on NASCAR’s YouTube channel, will provide his perspective and help connect NASCAR’s past with its present and future.

“We all are well aware of how much thirst and demand there is for the 90s era,” Burton said. “There seems to be a really large demand from the fans for that. Our vision for this podcast is to couple current events and current racing with our stories, and connect the past with things that are going on today.”

Martin and Burton were teammates driving for Jack Roush from 1996 into the 2004 season. Their friendship took root during that period, and they’ve stayed in touch since then. Martin said Burton is really the only driver from his era he stays in touch with to this day.

“I would have to say without Jeff Burton, I probably wouldn’t want to have done this. Jeff and I have always had tremendous chemistry. He was the best teammate a veteran could have ever asked for and he is a lot smarter than I am,” Martin said with a laugh. “He’s in the broadcasting world. With all those factors I figured being his wingman or having him for a wingman would make it perfect.”

MORE: All NASCAR podcasts

The host Smith started racing when he was 4 years old, going from go-karts to the Allison Legacy Series to late models by the time he was 16.

After hanging up his helmet at age 18, Smith stayed in the sport by constantly reinventing himself. He sports a NASCAR Cup Series championship ring, earned in 2014 as a teardown mechanic at Stewart-Haas Racing in the year Kevin Harvick won the first championship in the elimination-style NASCAR Playoffs.

He previously had earned a K&N Pro Series East title (now ARCA Menards Series East) working for Kyle Larson’s team as an interior mechanic. Two more titles followed when Smith transitioned to a communications role, in 2017 with Harrison Burton (Jeff’s son) in the East Series and then in 2018 in the ARCA Menards Series with Sheldon Creed.

RacingOne
RacingOne

“It’s really just great chemistry between Mamba, Jeff and I,” Martin said. “Jeff and I both tell stories of things most fans probably don’t know about or don’t even remember, and that’s really fun. But it’s more than that. It’s not really about us, it’s about the history of the sport and some of the heroes that paved the way for me and Jeff, and the guys that are currently out there on the race track now. So we are able to blend all that together and pay tribute to some of the greats that came before us.”

One thing that made Martin and Burton incredible teammates — besides their natural ability to drive a race car — was their honesty. Add in mutual respect to that, too.

Burton calls Martin the most honest person he knows. It’s what drew Burton to Martin in the garage back in the early 90s, when The Mayor was trying to find his path in NASCAR’s top series.

“Even before I knew him, he was a mentor to me,” Burton said. “I was paying attention to him long before he knew who I was. When I started Xfinity racing, he was a Cup guy and I could go ask a question and Mark would shoot me straight. His work ethic, his desire, his care, I got to really see that behind the scenes. You get to know people when things are hard. He is a straight-up good guy. If I ever need something, a piece of advice, he may not tell me what I want to hear, but he will tell me the truth.”

Telling the truth will be the hallmark of Mark, Mamba and The Mayor. Telling stories will be, too.

“Maybe this is naïve, but I feel like part of my role is to leave the sport better than I found it,” Burton said. “Because Bobby Allison did that for me, and somebody did it for him. I love the sport. I go to the race track every weekend. I just think that all of us could do more to move the ball to make things better.

We all kind of have the same goals. If we all work together, we can make things better. That’s just the way I feel about it. There was a time in my life I thought I wanted to run for office. I wanted to serve my community. NASCAR is my community. And I want to serve it as best I can.”

Posted on by Sean Montgomery

The saying goes, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. But in recent history, drivers starting outside of the top 10 have struggled to reach Victory Lane at Kansas Speedway.

Five of the last six races at Kansas were won from a top-10 starting position, with defending spring winner Kyle Busch starting ninth. And only three times in the last 12 races has a car beginning outside the first five rows at the 1.5-mile track gone on to Victory Lane.

But if you are expecting the trend of dominance to continue in Sunday’s Sunflower State showdown (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), think again. Early 2022 numbers, albeit a small sample size, suggest it isn’t a given.

KANSAS: Weekend schedule | Who’s the betting favorite? | Buy tickets for the race

Both of the races this season on 1.5-mile tracks were won from a starting position outside the top 10: Alex Bowman at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (13th) and William Byron at Atlanta Motor Speedway (12th). In fact, seven of the 12 races this season have seen a winner who started 11th or lower, including multi-race winner Ross Chastain, who started 16th at Circuit of The Americas and 19th at Talladega Superspeedway. Surprising numbers with the return of practice and qualifying sessions, but a healthy nod to the variety already seen with the Next Gen car.

In the last 10 races at Kansas, the track has been an unpredictable wild-card that has produced eight different winners.

 YEAR
  WINNERS (spring / fall)
2017  Martin Truex Jr. / Martin Truex Jr.
2018  Kevin Harvick / Chase Elliott
2019  Brad Keselowski / Denny Hamlin
2020  Denny Hamlin / Joey Logano
2021  Kyle Busch / Kyle Larson

Joe Gibbs Racing has earned the most collective success at Kansas with Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin checking in as the only two-time victors in this span. JGR has also won three of the last five.

Prior to Kyle Larson’s dominant, 3.619-second win last fall, the previous seven races at the track have only had a combined margin of victory of 2.784 seconds.

In some ways, the parity seen at Kansas mirrors the fluctuating field we have seen so far this season. Through the first third of the schedule, 10 unique drivers have been first to the checkered flag. Included in that total were three first-time Cup Series winners: Austin Cindric (Daytona 500), Chase Briscoe (Phoenix Raceway) and Ross Chastain (COTA). For comparison, the series only recorded one first-time winner all of last season: Michael McDowell, in the season-opening Daytona 500.

MORE: Paint schemes for Kansas | Full entry list | Play Fantasy Live

Kansas provides an opportunity for teams and drivers to change the entire course of their season.

Historically, the Kansas City track has favored the seasoned veterans of the sport, rewarding drivers who started out front with the ability to stay there. And since being added to the schedule in 2001, Kansas has had 16 different winners in 32 races but has never produced a first-time Cup Series winner.

If the 2022 trajectory continues, Sunday’s race could very well kick some of these old Kansas trends.

Statistical source: Racing Insights

Posted on by Staff Report

“Today of all days,” wrote Austin Petty in a statement that could not ring more true.

On the 22-year anniversary of Adam Petty’s death in a racing accident, his brother, Austin, announced the birth Thursday of a child with wife Sarah — a girl, Ellington Montgomery Petty.

Adam Petty was the first-born son of Kyle Petty. He passed away at age 19 after a crash during practice at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on May 12, 2000. Kyle Petty had two other children from his first marriage — Austin, now 40, and 36-year-old Montgomery, who now shares a middle name with the Petty family’s newest addition.

Austin and Sarah Petty have two other children, boys Stonewall and Rhett.

Adam Petty’s memory lives on with the Victory Junction Camp founded near the Petty family’s hometown in Randleman, North Carolina. The multi-purpose facility opened its doors in June 2004, providing life-changing camp experiences for children with serious and chronic medical conditions and their families.

Posted on by Staff Report

The National Motorsports Appeals Panel rescinded a race disqualification penalty in a hearing Thursday for the No. 88 ThorSport Racing team, restoring a fifth-place finish for driver Matt Crafton in last weekend’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Darlington Raceway.

RELATED: Kansas weekend schedule

Crafton and the No. 88 team were initially stripped of the top-five result in Friday’s Dead On Tools 200 for violating Section 14.17.3.2.1.2.A of the NASCAR Rule Book — Post-Qualifying and Post-Race Front Body Inspection Heights. Race officials indicated that the No. 88 truck was found to be too low in the front, and Crafton was moved to last place in the 36-truck field.

After hearing Thursday’s testimony, however, the three-member panel ruled “that the Appellants did not violate the Rule(s) set forth in the Penalty Notice,” opting to rescind the original penalty.

The panel’s decision is considered final. The three panel members who heard the appeal were Tom DeLoach, Dixon Johnston and Hunter Nickell.

Posted on by Brandon White

Six years ago, Cayden Lapcevich and Andrew Ranger engaged in a tough battle for the NASCAR Pinty’s Series championship, with Lapcevich ultimately coming out on top by 54 points.

The two experienced Canadian competitors now find themselves working together to achieve the same goal, as Lapcevich will serve as Ranger’s crew chief for the new Paille Racing Team during the 2022 Pinty’s Series season.

Lapcevich has always respected Ranger’s ability to navigate every type of track in Canada and is confident he can use his own knowledge from the Pinty’s Series to help Ranger tie Scott Steckly in championships with four apiece.

“It’s funny how the world works sometimes, especially with how this deal came together,” Lapcevich said. “[Andrew and I] were racing each other for a championship in 2016, and now here we are trying to get one as a team. He’s a clean, respectful driver, and I always enjoyed racing with him.”

FLORACING: Follow the NASCAR Pinty’s Series all year long

Being a crew chief is not where Lapcevich envisioned his career would go after becoming a Pinty’s Series champion in 2016, yet he is thrilled to continue the passion that was passed down to him by his father Jeff and grandfather Joe.

The advice Joe and Jeff provided Cayden Lapcevich in the early days of his career helped him transition into Pinty’s Series competition. After getting one top five in six starts back in 2015, Lapcevich entered 2016 optimistic he could at least claim his first Pinty’s Series victory.

Not once did Lapcevich believe that 2016 season would see him outrun veterans like Ranger, Alex Tagliani and Kevin Lacroix for three victories and a championship.

“A championship was something we did not think was going to happen that year,” Lapcevich said. “We even lost a major sponsor and were only going to run select events, but we pieced it together as we went and winning the championship that way just made it all the more special.”

Cayden Lapcevich celebrates a victory at Wyant Group Raceway in 2016. (Photo by Matthew Murnaghan/Matthew Murnaghan/NASCAR via Getty Images)

Lapcevich followed up his championship campaign with another three-win season and a third-place finish in the point standings. With momentum on his side and plenty of attention surrounding him, Lapcevich was excited to embark on the next step of his NASCAR career.

Unfortunately for Lapcevich, the opportunity to compete in one of NASCAR’s top three divisions never arrived, and funding issues have prevented him from making another Pinty’s Series start since the end of the 2017 season.

Instead, Lapcevich has spent the last few years primarily running various cars in the United States. Lapcevich had minimal issues carrying over his efficiency in Canada to the U.S., as he tallied two victories in Toledo Speedway’s Glass City 200 while also stringing together several strong runs in a Super Late Model fielded by Bobby Blount.

RACING-REFERENCE: Career NASCAR stats for Lapcevich

Lapcevich still wants to continue racing whenever he has an opportunity to do so, but he is now solely focused on making sure Ranger has everything he needs to make a serious run for his fourth Pinty’s Series championship.

Ranger said Lapcevich always challenged him as a driver whenever they shared the track together, adding that having a fellow champion atop the pit box has only provided him more comfort in his ability to establish consistency with the Paille Racing Team in their first Pinty’s Series season.

“It’s a great opportunity to have Cayden crew chief me,” Ranger said. “He’s very intelligent and whenever I raced against him in the past, we always did well together. Cayden’s a great driver but he really likes the crew chief role, so when I was asked if Cayden could be my crew chief, I quickly said yes.”

The all-time Pinty’s Series wins leader, Ranger has found success in nearly every single car he has climbed into. Outside of his 30 career Pinty’s Series victories, Ranger has also visited Victory Lane seven times with Robert Torriere between the three ARCA Menards Series divisions.

RACING-REFERENCE: Career NASCAR stats for Ranger

Of the drivers Ranger has raced against during his long career, he recalls Lapcevich being one of the more well-rounded when it comes to tackling a diverse Pinty’s Series schedule that features an even mix of road courses and short tracks. It did not surprise Ranger one bit to see Lapcevich showcase that same maturity while driving in the U.S..

With Lapcevich as his crew chief and David Wight supplying the chassis for his No. 27 Chevrolet, Ranger has high expectations for the 2022 Pinty’s Series season and is looking forward to seeing what the team accomplishes together when the new year gets underway.

“I’d love to get that fourth championship,” Ranger said. “My goal is to tie Scott Steckly, and right now I’m tied with L.P. Dumoulin. I’m going to give it my all to try and get a championship at the end, but I really want to give Cayden his first win as a crew chief.”

Andrew Ranger will be driving for the new Paille Racing Team as he searches for his fourth NASCAR Pinty’s Series title. (Photo by Matthew Murnaghan/NASCAR)

Saturday’s Pinty Series opener at Sunset Speedway will serve as the first real test for Lapcevich and Ranger’s new working relationship.

Although neither has won a Pinty’s Series event at Sunset, Lapecvich said the familiarity he has with the short track along with the experience of both Ranger and Wight should put the team in a great position to win right away.

“Sunset is a place I know really well,” Lapcevich said. “It was where I raced weekly after I got out of quarter midgets, so I like going there. We always seemed to miss it just by a little bit every time we went there, but we’ve always been good there, and Wight won twice at Sunset with Raphael Lessard last year, so I think we can start on a good note this weekend.”

Both Lapcevich and Ranger are aware victories will be hard to come by in the Pinty’s Series this year. The 2022 driver roster includes Lessard, former champions like Dumoulin and D.J. Kennington, as well at Lapcevich’s younger brother Treyten, who happens to be driving a car fielded by the all-time series champion in Steckly.

Despite the tough competition, Lapcevich is familiar with the parity the Pinty’s Series has to offer. He said the strategy that won him his lone title can easily help Ranger reach a pivotal milestone in his own career.

“We’re going to do the same thing that won us a title in 2016,” Lapcevich said. “That involves making the right calls and keeping the car up front all the time.”

Through his unconventional path back to the Pinty’s Series, Lapcevich has cherished every chance to race between Canada and the U.S., but he feels right at home assisting one of the most successful drivers in his home country.

Now that his future has more clarity, Lapcevich hopes to keep building upon his family’s proud racing legacy by becoming a championship-winning crew chief.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

Three-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton brings two unique distinctions to Saturday night’s Heart of America 200 (8 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

First, he’s the only former Kansas winner in the field for the 24th renewal at the track. Second, he’s the only driver to have competed in all of the previous 23 Kansas races, dating to 2001.

RELATED: Kansas weekend schedule | Truck Series standings

During that long string of races, the 45-year-old veteran has accumulated three victories, seven top fives and 13 top 10s at the track.

Crafton will have an experience advantage over every other driver in the field, but that’s not to say he won’t have stiff competition for the win. After a frustrating start to the season, John Hunter Nemechek picked up his first victory of the year last Friday at Darlington Raceway.

Niece Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar, seeking his maiden win in the series, has finished second in the last two races, at Bristol Dirt and Darlington.

“We have a lot to look forward to at Kansas this week,” said Hocevar, 19, who was born nearly two years after Crafton made his first Kansas start. “Producing consecutive second-place finishes is big, for not only myself but Niece Motorsports and the No. 42 team, too.

“It’s really good to show the improvements we’ve made and to have a lot of points in the bank that we did not have three weeks ago. The ability to show our speed at three completely different race tracks over the past month is encouraging, and I have a lot of confidence in our intermediate program.”

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to the midwest this weekend with a visit to Kansas Speedway.

The sport hasn’t raced at a traditional 1.5-mile track since Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March, though the races in between included a trip to Atlanta which utilized the superspeedway rules package.

Kansas will be back on the Cup Series Playoffs schedule this fall, so teams will put plenty of focus on what they can learn on Sunday afternoon (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RACE YOU TO THE POLE

Cup teams will be broken into Groups A and B for practice and qualifying at Kansas. Their Saturday begins with practice at 4 p.m. ET (FS1), where each group will be allotted 15 minutes of practice. Once practice is complete, the groups will head out for single-car qualifying in which each driver will be allowed a single, timed lap. The five fastest drivers from each group will advance to the second round of qualifying, where the 10 competitors will fire off for single-car laps once again. The fastest of those 10 drivers will earn the Busch Light Pole award.

RELATED: Cup qualifying order | Kansas schedule | Cup Series standings 

KANSAS HISTORY

– In 1997, Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, were selected as the site for a new Midwestern speedway at the intersection of Interstates 70 and 435. That December, International Speedway Corp. (ISC) announced plans to build a 1.5-mile speedway to seat approximately 75,000. 

– Architecture firm HNTB designed the facility and Turner Construction provided construction management. Construction began on the 1,200-acre, 1.5-mile speedway in May 1999.

– In July 1999, 13,750 preferred tickets went on sale and were quickly purchased. The demand prompted ISC to expand the planned 32 suites by an additional 36, increasing capacity from 75,000 to 82,000.

– Completion was targeted for 2000 but was delayed by weather and lawsuits from nearby landowners. Paving began in September 2000 and the speedway was completed in early 2001. Estimated project cost was $250 million.

– The track’s first Cup race was held in September 2001 and won by Jeff Gordon.

– Sunday’s race marks the 33rd Cup Series event at Kansas.

Source: Racing Insights

GOODYEAR TIRES

As teams progress with the Next Gen car, one observation made has been an increased load on the left-rear corner of the car, partially due to the independent rear suspension and partially thanks to the aerodynamic shift to the vehicle’s rear. To accommodate for that, Goodyear has recommended teams set their left-rear tire pressures 2 PSI higher than the left-front tire.

“The amount of air pressure in the tire should directly correlate to the amount of load on that corner of the car,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “If the amount of load increases — like it has on the left-rear of this Next Gen car — you need to increase the load-carrying capability in that tire, which is done via air pressure. If you run below our recommended pressures, the tire can over-deflect, sustain damage and result in an air loss.”

This week’s left-side tires were also used two weeks ago at Dover while the right-side compound was used at Darlington Raceway, Auto Club Speedway and Las Vegas. This tire combination will be used at Texas Motor Speedway for All-Star Race weekend as well as at Nashville Superspeedway.

KANSAS STORY LINES 

– Hendrick Motorsports has seen all four of its drivers visit Victory Lane (William Byron, Atlanta and Martinsville; Kyle Larson, Auto Club; Alex Bowman, Las Vegas; Chase Elliott, Dover). This marks the first time an organization has won with four drivers within the first 11 races of the year.

– Hendrick Motorsports won 22 times since the start of 2021, twice as many as any other organization in that time.

– Hendrick Motorsports drivers won the last four races on 1.5-mile speedways, including the most recent race at Kansas. No team has ever won five straight races on 1.5-mile tracks.

Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Sean Gardner | Getty Images

– Tyler Reddick notched his fifth runner-up finish in the Cup Series last week at Darlington but is still looking for his first career win. Only one driver has more runner-up finishes all-time without a win.

– Richard Childress Racing’s 208 laps led this year between Austin Dillon and Tyler Reddick are the team’s most circuits led in a season since 2013, which was Kevin Harvick’s last season before departing for Stewart-Haas Racing.

– Nine races in 2022 were won with a pass for the lead in the final 10 laps, the most ever through 12 races in Cup.

– Ten different drivers have won through 12 races in 2022, only the seventh time there were at least 10 winners through 12 races in Cup.

Source: Racing Insights

BET YOUR DRIVER WILL WIN?

As the most recent winner at Kansas, Kyle Larson heads into the weekend as the favorite at 6-1 odds, according to BetMGM. Nobody led more laps at Kansas in 2021 than Larson, who led 262 of a total 534 laps.

Behind Larson in odds so far are Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch, who both enter as 8-1 favorites. Busch is the defending winner of this event, and Elliott has finished inside the top six in six of the past seven Kansas races.

If you’re looking for a long shot this weekend, perhaps this is a week to consider Brad Keselowski, who enters at 66-1 odds. Yes, his season hasn’t gone how most of his previous years have. Driving the No. 6 for RFK Racing, Keselowski has just one top-10 finish and has finished 20th or worse in each of the past three races. But Keselowski has three top fives in his last four Kansas starts. Maybe the 2012 champion can turn that into a major positive Sunday.

RELATED: Odds for Kansas

FANTASY LIVE

Want to manage a team and race your way to the top of the leaderboards? Check out NASCAR Fantasy Live, which is open now. The free-to-play game lets you choose your drivers each week and show off your crew-chief instincts by garaging a driver by the end of Stage 2, and there is a $25,000 prize for the winner.

The 2022 Fantasy Live points leaders are Chase Elliott (447), William Byron (388) and Ryan Blaney (380).

How to play: Fantasy Live | Set up a team today!

ALSO ON NASCAR.COM

Get additional camera views by logging on to NASCAR Drive, where each week a select number of in-car cameras will be available — as well as a battle cam and an overhead look.

NASCAR has partnered with LiveLike to add fan engagement in the NASCAR Mobile App. Log in to the mobile app during the race for polls, quizzes, the cheer meter and more — and see instant results from NASCAR fans like you.

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

The champ is back.

Doug Coby, a six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion, is making his return to the Tour this weekend at Riverhead Raceway in the Miller Lite 200 (6 p.m. ET on FloRacing).

The native of Milford, Connecticut, will make his first Tour start of the season aboard Tommy Baldwin Jr.’s No. 7. He’ll be the third different driver to pilot Baldwin’s car this year, following Mike Christopher Jr. at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway and Jimmy Blewett at Richmond Raceway.

Earlier this year, Coby announced he would be scaling back his racing efforts on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour after being a regular with the Tour as far back as 2003.

Initially his schedule was set to include four Tour races, including events at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park and Martinsville Speedway.

Saturday’s Miller Lite 200 at Riverhead Raceway was not initially part of that schedule, but it’s as good a place as any for Coby to make his first start this season.

Of his 31 Tour victories, Coby has won twice at Riverhead. Those victories also happen to be his two most recent Tour triumphs, both of which came last year.

Based on his recent success at Riverhead, it would be hard to bet against Coby when the green flag waves Saturday night at the quarter-mile Long Island bullring.

Jake Johnson ready for Tour debut in Ole Blue

Donny Lia, driver of the #3 Propane Plus – SYP, during the Virginia Is For Racing Lovers 150 for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia on April 1, 2022. (Sanjay Suchak/NASCAR)
Jake Johnson will take the wheel of the Boehler Racing Enterprises Ole Blue No. 3 this weekend at Riverhead Raceway. (Photo: Sanjay Suchak/NASCAR)

Boehler Racing Enterprises is going from a veteran to a rookie for the third race of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season Saturday night at Riverhead.

After having the returning Donny Lia pilot the Ole Blue No. 3 at the most recent Tour race at Richmond in April, the team will welcome rookie Jake Johnson to the seat for Saturday’s Miller Lite 200.

Johnson, a 19-year-old native of Massachusetts, is best known for his efforts in a Late Model mainly in the Northeast. He’s enjoyed a bit of fendered success, including winning the 2020 edition of the Snowflake 100 at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida.

However, he’s fairly new to Modified racing.

“We never really had any plans of going Modified Tour racing,” Johnson told NASCAR.com. “We bought a Modified last year to run some open races because to travel with the Pro Late Model stuff is getting a little challenging. We figured the Modifieds were closer and we’d give it a go.”

He made his debut in a Modified last October at Massachusetts’ Seekonk Speedway, finishing third in a 100-lap race that featured a stacked field of drivers, including Ron Silk, Justin Bonsignore and Matt Hirschman, among others.

RELATED: Everything you need to know about Riverhead Raceway

It was that result that caught the attention of Boehler Racing Enterprises owner Michael Boehler.

“As far as the experience standpoint and his age and what he’s done to this point have really impressed me,” said Boehler. “At Seekonk last October, starting in the back and working his way up, being smooth and staying out of trouble and finishing third was kind the deciding factor for me.”

Not only will Saturday’s race be Johnson’s Tour debut, but it will also be his first time competing at Riverhead.

He said he’s been studying video in preparation for Saturday’s race and believes a top-10 finish is a reasonable result for his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour start.

“I’d say there are a lot of unknowns going into the first race,” Johnson said. “I don’t know exactly what to expect in my first NASCAR race in general. I think I’m surrounded by the best people I could be doing it with.

“I feel like I’ve got a pretty good understanding of how the places races and how I need to be going into it. My expectations … a top-10 would be a real good day.”

The Miller Lite 200 at Riverhead is the first of eight scheduled races for Johnson in the Ole Blue No. 3 this season.

Kyle Soper, driver of the #15 Eastport Feeds Ford, during qualifying for the Miller Lite 200 for the Whelen Modified Tour at Riverhead Raceway on September 18, 2021 in Riverhead, New York. (Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)
Kyle Soper, driver of the #15 Eastport Feeds Ford, during qualifying for the Miller Lite 200 for the Whelen Modified Tour at Riverhead Raceway on September 18, 2021 in Riverhead, New York. (Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)

Locals ready to give Tour drivers a run for their money

Riverhead Raceway is well known for its local contingent of Modified drivers.

That local contingent will be well represented during the Miller Lite 200, with defending and three-time Riverhead Raceway Modified champion Kyle Soper leading the charge.

Soper has made 13 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour starts dating back to 2016, with more than half of them coming at Riverhead. He’s scored three top-five finishes with the Tour, all at Riverhead. His best finish with the Tour was a third-place finish in 2017.

Another local competitor on the entry list is Roger Turbush, who finished third in NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour competition last season at Riverhead. It was his best Tour finish in eight starts, seven of which have come at Riverhead.

Other local competitors entered in the Miller Lite 200 are Dylan Slepian, Tom Rogers Jr., John Beatty Jr., Matthew Brode and Dave Brigati.

Notes:

  • Eric Goodale and Tommy Catalano enter the Miller Lite 200 tied at the top of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings after two of 16 scheduled races. Tyler Rypkema, Jon McKennedy and Ron Silk are third through fifth, respectively.
  • Timmy Solomito, a nine-time Tour race winner, makes his first start of the season in his family-owned No. 66 at Riverhead. Of his nine previous series victories, three of them have come at Riverhead.
  • After making his Tour debut at New Smyrna Speedway, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race winner Joey Coulter will make his second Tour start at Riverhead.
  • Justin Bonsignore, the most recent Tour winner at Richmond Raceway and the defending Tour champion, is ninth in the Tour standings ahead of Saturday’s race at Riverhead. Eight of his 32 Tour wins have come at Riverhead, second only to his success at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, where he has 12 wins.
Posted on by Staff Report

Ross Chastain does not have a great record at Kansas Speedway, but bettors appear to be ignoring those trends for this week’s NASCAR Cup Series AdventHealth 400.

Despite NASCAR odds of +1000, tied for sixth-best among all drivers as of Wednesday, Chastain is generating the most action at the BetMGM online sportsbook.

The 29-year-old is drawing 13.8% of the tickets and a massive 35.1% of the handle.

Chastain has only raced six times at Kansas Speedway. His best finish is 14th, and his average finish is 25th. Additionally, in his last four races at the track, he has an average rating of 61.9.

Normally, this wouldn’t give much reason to back a driver, but that isn’t the case this week.

RELATED: Kansas weekend schedule | Full betting odds for Sunday

Chastain has been boom-or-bust in his last few races. In his previous five starts, he has three top-five finishes, but in the other two, he’s finished in 30th place or worse. 

Meanwhile, it’s not hard to find the best drivers at Kansas.

In their last six races at the track, Chase Elliott, Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski each have four top-five finishes. In terms of NASCAR odds, Elliott is +800, Harvick is +1600 and Keselowski is +6600. 

Elliott is the only driver of the bunch drawing much action, pulling in 8.7% of the handle, good for third-most.

There are also four Featured Matchups to bet on for this week’s AdventHeath 400.

Kyle Larson (-130) vs. Denny Hamlin (+100)

Despite winning at Kansas Speedway in each of the last two years, Hamlin is an underdog to Larson in this matchup.

In his last six races at the track, Hamlin has three top-five finishes. Meanwhile, in his last four races at the track, Larson has a win and two top 10s. 

Larson does have the best odds to win the race at +600 with Hamlin fourth at +900. Larson comes in with a better record of late. He has three top-six finishes in his last four races overall, while despite leading many laps of late, Hamlin has only one top-20 finish in the last month to show for it.

William Byron (-130) vs. Joey Logano (+100)

The two are fairly close in terms of odds to win the race, with Byron coming in at +900 and Logano at +1200, but Byron has a much better record at Kansas Speedway.

In his last six races, Byron has an impressive five top 10s. Logano hasn’t been as consistent. Over his last six races at the track, he has an average finish of 15.7 and just two top-10 finishes, including a win.

Logano is coming in with good vibes after winning last week at Darlington Raceway. 

Tyler Reddick (-120) vs. Kevin Harvick (-110)

This is the closest matchup, and it’s easy to see why. 

Both drivers come into the race with +1600 odds to win, but looking at track history, it’s interesting to see Reddick favored.

Harvick has five top-10 finishes in his last six races at Kansas Speedway, while Reddick has an average finish of 15.2 in his last five races.

Erik Jones (-150) vs. Aric Almirola (+115)

Jones is the biggest favorite when it comes to the Featured Matchups, and it shows in both race odds and track history.

Jones is +3300 to win the race, while Almirola is +6600. And then in his last six races at the track, Jones has an average finish of 14.8 and two top fives. In the same timeframe, Almirola has an average finish of 18.2 and just one top 10.

You can view updated AdventHealth 400 odds and more online sports betting opportunities at BetMGM.

Posted on by Staff Report

Team Penske and the affiliated Wood Brothers Racing team have shifted their pit-crew lineup ahead of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway.

RELATED: Kansas weekend schedule | Cup Series standings

The slight realignment of over-the-wall personnel is reflected in team rosters for this Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM).

• The Nos. 2 and 12 Team Penske crews have swapped front-tire changers, moving Curtis Thompson to the No. 2 Ford and Ryan Flores to the No. 12 Ford.
• The No. 12 and 21 teams switched tire carriers, with Trevor Apsey joining the No. 12 crew and Wade Moore shifting to the Wood Brothers’ No. 21 for Kansas.

Flores, a co-host of the Stacking Pennies podcast with longtime friend Corey LaJoie, touched on the move in the latest edition of the show, released Wednesday. Flores said the new crew members would have to generate chemistry quickly with just one week between races; he added that the new-look No. 12 crew practiced for the first time Tuesday.

MORE: Listen to latest episode

“You also have to have your mentality right, too. You’re not trying to go in there and be the savior of the 12 car. You’re just trying to put darts on the board, trying to be solid, keep him in the race, give him a shot to win,” Flores said. “You’re not chasing time; you’re just trying to do a good job. So yeah, you take time, you work through a lot of stuff, but you also have to be ready come Sunday.”