ROAR! - Weekly Racing Magazine - July 24, 2020

THE FIRST TO FIVE

KANSAS LIGHTS UP THE GROOVY GAUGE

5 LESSONS LEARNED AT KANSAS

DENNY HAMLIN NOW HAS HANDFUL OF WINS ON SEASON AFTER TAKING CHECKERED AT KANSAS IN THE HOTSEAT WITH RUSTY WALLACE

DRIVER Q&A WITH MYATT SNIDER

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KANSAS RACE REVIEW & ANALYSIS In this week’s episode of Out of the Groove, host and creator Eric Estepp gives us his race review and analysis from last night’s dramatic late night events at Kansas Motor Speedway.

Thanks to the recent changes to the aero package in the last few years, Kansas has been distinguishing itself as a marquee mile and a half track on the circuit, and last night certainly delivered more of that.

For one thing, Kyle Busch actually managed 0 0 4

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

to earn his first playoff point last night, which doesn’t say much stacked against team mate Denny Hamlin’s handful of wins this season. But it’s certainly notable for Busch, the defending champion, to have such a lackluster season (mostly chalked up to the lack of practice).

But what else happened under the Thursday night lights in Kansas? Where did the race fall on Eric’s patented Groovy Gauge? All that and more in this week’s episode of Out of the Groove!

5 LESSONS LEARNED

5

LESSONS LEARNED AT KANSAS DENNY HAMLIN TAKES FIFTH WIN OF 2020 With a relatively short turnaround time for the NASCAR Cup Series teams between Texas and Kansas, teams had to be quick to adjust and prepare.

For Denny Hamlin and his No. 11 FedEx Toyota team, speed and efficiency seem to be their strengths much like their sponsor. However, the path to a fifth win in 2020 wasn’t easily mapped out as a package delivery route.

Still, Hamlin and his Joe Gibbs Racing brigade put on a stellar effort. Now, here’s the five takeaways from Thursday night’s Super Start Batteries 400!

BY ROB TIONGSON

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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5 LESSONS LEARNED

5

JOHNSON NEEDS A GOOD LUCK LOAN

I

f Ally offered a good luck loan to Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 team, they would likely take it just to get past their current slide. It’s not like Johnson and crew chief Cliff Daniels have been off with their communication. In fact, their cars have been quite competitive particularly during long green flag runs. In this case, effort doesn’t always equate to great finishes as Johnson, who climbed inside the top-10 by Lap 138, was collected in the “Mini One” on the backstretch that involved Joey Logano and Matt DiBenedetto on Lap 176. Thursday night’s race at Kansas was a microcosm of Johnson’s season. Despite unloading fast cars on a consistent basis, it’s been dark clouds and storms for the Californian and his Hendrick Motorsports comrades. Outside of the Playoff picture following Kansas, can this bunch finally turn things around for Round 20 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway?

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5 LESSONS LEARNED

4

TY DILLON AND MCDOWELL TAKE RESPECTABLE TOP-20’S

T

he midfield battle in the NASCAR Cup Series may not garner a lot of attention during the year.

However, it’s an intriguing one given the close competition with these fledgling teams and drivers. On Thursday night at Kansas, Ty Dillon and his No. 13 Germain Racing Chevy team drove their way to a respectable 15th place finish. While it’s been a tough season for Dillon and crew chief Matt Borland, they’ve shown flashes of brilliance with six-top 20 finishes since NASCAR’s return in mid-May. Meanwhile, Michael McDowell and his No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford troupe logged a terrific 16th at this always competitive but treacherous speedway. It seems like McDowell and his crew chief Drew Blickensderfer continually elevate the overall performance of this formidable team. With an average finish of 19.3 this year, it’s certainly a solid improvement over last year when McDowell had an average finish of 24.2.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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5 LESSONS LEARNED

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WILLIAM BYRON NETS A DECENT TOP-10 FINISH

A

lthough it’s been some time since Keith Rodden sat atop the pit box for a Hendrick Motorsports team, his return nearly resulted in a possible win at Kansas. Making a bold, brave two-tire pit stop call for William Byron, the innovative crew chief saw his driver leading the Lap 200 restart. While Byron temporarily relinquished the lead to Brad Keselowski on Lap 206, the 22-year-old Charlotte, N.C. native returned to the top spot on Lap 222. Saved by a caution on Lap 235, Byron was back in the lead with another aggressive two-tire call by Rodden.

Byron might’ve been overwhelmed in the ensuing restart with 28 laps remaining, but he held on to his No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet to net a 10th place result. While holding onto a precarious margin for the final Playoff spot, Byron’s 10th at Kansas might be a difference maker before the start of the postseason.

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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5 LESSONS LEARNED

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KYLE BUSCH’S FRUSTRATING LUCK CONTINUES AT KANSAS

M

uch like Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch might want to consider applying for a good luck loan but perhaps with Toyota Financial. Early in the Super Start Batteries 400, Busch seemed like a man on a mission when he won Stage 1. Despite a maddening Stage 2, the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion drove to a fifth-place finish. Biding his time with a rather fast No. 18 M&M’s Fudge Brownie Toyota, Busch was running third before crashing into the wall on Lap 228.

Losing two laps for tires and repairs, Busch’s race seemed like a nightmare before a Lap 235 caution brought him back in the fight. Rallying his way back to an 11th place finish, one must wonder when KFB will finally return to his winning ways. With the NASCAR Cup Series heading to “The Magic Mile” in Loudon on Sunday, August 2, perhaps Busch will score a winning lobster.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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5 LESSONS LEARNED

1

DENNY HAMLIN KEEPS ON DELIVERING WITH WINS

REPLACEMENT

LIFETIME

A

lthough it may seem easy to concede Cup Series races to Kevin Harvick or Denny Hamlin, there’s always the element of surprise. After all, this was on display at Kentucky when Cole Custer pulled off the improbable victory. Last Sunday, Austin Dillon braved the Texas heat for his first victory since the 2018 Daytona 500.

On Thursday evening, the Harvick and Hamlin Show wasn’t on display like in weeks’ past. Instead, it was more like the “Denny Hamlin Special.” Starting in 10th, Hamlin showcased his No. 11 Camry’s pace with a second-place finish in Stage 1 and a fourth in Stage 2. Humbled by his fifth win, Hamlin said, “I don’t know that we had the best car, but we had a top-three car all day. Pit crew did an amazing job getting us out there in front of everyone else. This team is hitting on all cylinders right now.”

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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RECAPPING JIMMIE JOHNSON’S NASCAR CAREER

■■ Jimmie Johnson won his third straight Cup Series title in 2009.

IN LEGENDARY COMPANY JOHNSON TIES YARBOROUGH WITH THIRD STRAIGHT TITLE

BY JA RED TURNER

I

n 2008, Jimmie Johnson became the only driver in NASCAR history besides the legendary Cale Yarborough to win three consecutive NASCAR Cup Series championships.

A year later, Johnson made history by becoming the first driver to ever capture four consecutive titles in NASCAR’s premier division.

It happened at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where Johnson arrived for the 2009 season finale needing to finish just 25th or better to be guaranteed of leaving with a record-setting championship.

To no one’s surprise, Johnson finished fifth in the race — far better than he needed to finish to walk away with the championship trophy in hand. His final cushion in the standings was a whopping 141 points over second-place Mark Martin, one of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates.

Johnson concluded this unforgettable season with seven victories, including one at Phoenix the week prior to Homestead which made his lead going into the finale all but insurmountable.

This, of course, was before the days of the Championship 4 where

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

four drivers enter the final race with equal points and an equal shot at the crown.

Asked to assess the implications of his historymaking title run, the typically humble Johnson made no attempt to downplay its significance.

“You know, the fact that nobody has done this, I think it puts me near the top,” he said.

“I certainly look at the seven championships by both (Dale) Earnhardt and (Richard) Petty, their race wins, their being in the sport for the number of years and all that they’ve done; those two guys are kind of at a draw at the top.

“Hopefully, my stats and win totals and championship totals can rival theirs. But it puts us up there; it really does. And the cool thing is we’re not done yet. We’ve got a lot of racing left ahead of us.”

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JUST SAYIN’ ▶ LACK OF PRACTICE AND QUALIFYING IS BAD FOR BUSINESS Practice makes perfect, they say. Except in NASCAR, apparently. Earlier this week, NASCAR announced that no practice or qualifying sessions will be held for any of the sport’s three main divisions for the remainder of 2020. Come again? So in other words, when drivers take the green flag next month for the first time ever on the tricky Daytona International Speedway road course, it will be with zero seat time. Here’s the deal, folks: If NASCAR can make an exception for the Coca-Cola 600 by letting drivers qualify as they did back in May, the sanctioning body can certainly do the same for other events where track time is even more important.

JA RED TURNER ▶▶ Chad Knaus has turned over a new leaf Over the past two decades, Chad Knaus has rightfully earned a reputation as one of the hardest-working people in the NASCAR garage. That was especially true during his highly successful run as crew chief for Jimmie Johnson, with whom Knaus won seven championships and more than 80 races. These days, as the crew chief for William Byron, Knaus is equally dedicated to his trade, but he also seems to have found some much-needed balance. This was evident in his decision to stay home for the birth of his second child rather than heading to Kansas Speedway. Let’s hope that others in the sport will follow the example set by Knaus this week and be present for those special moments that far supersede working any race.

■■ Chad Knaus has found balance after the birth of his second child.

▶▶ NASCAR continues to hit home runs with safety On Thursday at night at Kansas Speedway, we were reminded once again just how far NASCAR has come with its safety innovations and, in particular, its soft-wall technology formally known as SAFER barriers. The latest case study in NASCAR safety came about when Ryan Preece’s car went barreling head-first into the inside wall after being tagged by another vehicle. The crash was quite reminiscent of the one in the Xfinity Series race at Daytona in February 2015 when Kyle Busch suffered major foot and leg injuries. Preece, however, was able to walk away unscathed — which, like with Ryan Newman’s harrowing crash in this year’s Daytona 500, speaks volumes for the safety advancements NASCAR has implemented in relatively recent times.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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477

16 WILLIAM BYRON

452

17 TYLER REDDICK

442

18 ERIK JONES

440

19 JIMMIE JOHNSON

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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NOAH GRAGSON

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4

HARRISON BURTON

536

5

JUSTIN HALEY

550

6

BRANDON JONES

448

7

ROSS CHASTAIN

614

8

JUSTIN ALLGAIER

545

9

MICHAEL ANNETT

481

10 RILEY HERBST

377

11 RYAN SIEG

375

12 BRANDON BROWN

348

13 JEREMY CLEMENTS

317

14 MYATT SNIDER

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15 JESSE LITTLE

297

16 ALEX LABBE

285

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

WINS

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BEN RHODES

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267

6

ZANE SMITH

254

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BRETT MOFFITT

253

8

TYLER ANKRUM

248

9

TODD GILLILAND

234

10 MATT CRAFTON

225

11 DEREK KRAUS

214

12 JOHNNY SAUTER

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13 STEWART FRIESEN

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177

15 RAPHAEL LESSARD

168

16 TY MAJESKI

154

17 AUSTIN SELF

117

18 CORY ROPER

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19 JORDAN ANDERSON

111

20 CODIE ROHRBAUGH

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100

22 TATE FOGLEMAN

91

23 SPENCER DAVIS

126

24 ANGELA RUCH

84

25 NATALIE DECKER

71

26 KORBIN FORRISTER

63

27 RYAN TRUEX

61

28 CLAY GREENFIELD

60

29 TIMMY HILL

58

30 JENNIFER COBB

44

31 PARKER KLIGERMAN

41

32 BAYLEY CURREY

37

33 TYLER HILL

37

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020 5/15/2020 8:30:21 AM

DRIVER Q&A

EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS MYATT SNIDER CAPITALIZES ON UNIQUE XFINITY CAMPAIGN

BY JOSEPH WOLK IN

Myatt Snider didn’t enter 2020 as a fulltimer in the XFINITY Series. But fortunately enough, his partners continue to back him.

A few solid runs showed what he’s capable of, and now he’s gunning for the playoffs with Richard Childress Racing’s No. 21 team and RSS Racing/Reaume Brothers Racing in car No. 93. ▶ HOW MUCH DOES IT MEAN TO YOU THAT RICHARD CHILDRESS BELIEVES IN YOU? “It’s truly an honor. For someone who has been around the sport in pretty much every capacity, and who has seen multiple generations of drivers, it’s truly special that he thinks highly of me. I’m blessed to be able to get in his racecars a few more times this year.

We’ve had speed every time we’ve hit the track.

It only makes me that much more driven to put our TaxSlayer Camaro in victory lane.”

car you get in. In the [No.] 21, I know there’s not one reason I can’t go out and win every weekend and compete for stage wins. In the [No.] 93, a top 10 is a great day, and a top five is a perfect day, and the goal is to earn stage points as often as possible. It’s still awesome that I’m out here running full time, and I like the challenge.”

▶ WHAT IS IT LIKE TO RACE WITH TWO DIFFERENT TEAMS? “It’s a unique challenge because you have to change your expectations based on what

▶ WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SEASON? “Stay consistent. If there’s one thing we’ve been good at doing the whole time

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

■■ Myatt Snider races the No. 21 Chevrolet in the XFINITY Series for Richard Childress Racing.

since we came back, it’s consistency. We’ve been up there with the best of them in pretty much every race. In fact, I don’t think there’s one race, barring any strategy calls, where we’ve run outside of the top 15 for most of the race. So if we can maintain that consistency in being there, I’d like to think we can make it to the top 10 in points before the start of the playoffs.”

■■ Snider races the No. 93 car for RSS Racing/Reaume Brothers Racing in addition to the No.21 car for RCR.

▶ WHAT IS THE BIGGEST LESSON YOU’VE LEARNED THUS FAR IN THE XFINITY SERIES? “Timing and when to make certain moves. You can get yourself in a bad position if you try and go for something at the wrong place or time. But if you’re patient enough and time your moves out it can pay big dividends. I think these XFINITY cars really speak to my driving style, and I’m having a lot of fun driving them. Hopefully, we can continue having good runs in both cars.”

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IN THE HOTSEAT

IN THE HOT SEAT

Rusty Wallace

BY ROB TIONGSON

Throughout the season, Rob Tiongson interviews various drivers in the world of NASCAR. Today, as a preview for an upcoming special series, he talks with 1989 NASCAR Cup Series champion Rusty Wallace. ▶▶ Your first full season in Roger Penske’s new No. 2 Miller Genuine Draft ride was 1991. At the time, it was a Pontiac. After your success with Blue Max Racing, what was it like to drive for “The Captain” and build upon the foundation of his successful NASCAR Cup efforts?

Well, for me, it was really everything because I just respected everything that he did in IndyCar. He was like the king of racing to me. He was like, “Oh my god, if I could only be like that or ever drive for a person like that, that would be amazing.”

Although I just won the championship and had a great car owner, financially, we just couldn’t get the sponsors we needed at that point to continue on. So, Roger and I, and Don Miller, talked about forming a team. And when we put the team together, I couldn’t believe we did it. It was such a dream come true for me.

Even though I was real blessed to drive for Raymond Beadle, my team owner when I won the championship, when I knew that was over, I couldn’t think of another person that I’d rather be with than Penske. ▶▶ I’m sure he felt the same way about you. Before the team was formed in 1991, you debuted in Cup with Roger Penske in 1980 at Atlanta, if I recall.?

I did. In 1980, I drove for him, and we had a helluva first run. I finished second for him for the very first time.

And then we decided to run another race, and we had mechanical problems. Then I ran another race for him, and we had more mechanical problems. It was really

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

Snakeskin-PolePos-ColAd.qxp_Layout 1 1/27/20 10:58

starting to affect the guys in the IndyCar shop because they were trying to run the stock car out of the same shop.

And it just did not fit at all. He told me, “Why don’t you go back, get some more experience, and hopefully, one of these days, our paths will cross again.” And boy was I disappointed.

But after I won the championship in 1989, I called him back up and I said, “Do I have enough experience now?” And he said, “Hell yea! Let’s do it.” So, we started the team and that’s how Penske Racing started.

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■■ Rusty Wallace was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2013.

▶▶ It’s cool to see how fate brings people together. Now, you won a couple of times in ‘91, including at Bristol and Pocono. What was it about the short tracks and road courses that seemed to suit your approach?

Well, I grew up on the short tracks of America so I kind of cut my teeth there and felt comfortable racing on those short tracks. The road courses were something I hadn’t run before but knew I had to get good at them.

So, I went to the Bob Bondurant Experience in Sonoma, Calif., and he taught me a lot of road racing skills. But what really got me going was Barry Dodson and all the guys at Blue Max Racing who really put their focus on building a great road course car.

Back then, they used to take short track cars like the ones we’d run at Martinsville and Bristol. They would take and change up the A-frames and re-outfit them to turn left and right, which wasn’t the proper way to do it, but it was the quickest, and that was what most people were doing. But they said, “We’re going to build a car that’s just totally a road course car, and it’s built to turn right,” mostly because that’s what all the road courses were back then with mostly right-hand turns.

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IN THE HOTSEAT

■■ Rusty Wallace developed a rivalry with Jeff Gordon.

So, we built them and started testing them.

And they really brought me up to speed. And man, I took off and started running good, and I started winning. Boy, it was just fantastic. I won the very last two races ever run at Riverside Speedway before they shut it down. So, if you look at that long history of Riverside, the last two winners were Rusty Wallace and Rusty Wallace. And it felt good. ▶▶ During the 1991 season, NASCAR started to expand upon its popularity with TNN joining the series as a new TV partner as well as the advent of more in-car radio check ins during telecasts? When you would get on the horn during a race, did you view it as a way to bring the fans closer to the action? Or were there times where you’d think, “Well, I’d love to chat but can we do this later?”

Well, I always considered it a nice honor that they wanted to come to you and that all of 0 3 2

America was listening to how we felt before the race started and what was going through your mind before you took the green flag. And I didn’t mind it at all.

In fact, I felt it was a real good pump for my sponsors and myself to get that interview request because I’d get up there and say, “Well, we had practice last night. And the car wasn’t real good.

We made a lot of changes and it’s going to be a nervous first couple of laps to see how all these changes have been.” And then everybody would be like, “Wow, I didn’t know that! Holy smokes!”

Any time they did that for me at Bristol, it’d be like, “I wonder what Rusty’s got to say because he’s one of the winningest drivers here. What’s on his mind?” More or less, it set the tone and it kinda got the people jacked up.

They still do it today, and right now with MRN, I was doing that when I first went to work for them. But then they passed that new rule where TV, at the stage breaks, was doing it, radio was doing it, but radio had to come after television.

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

■■ Rusty Wallace raced Roger Penske’s No. 2 MGD ride in 1991.

So, they asked a question and then I would come in and ask the driver another question.

It got to be annoying, and there wasn’t enough time for the drivers, so we quit doing it. But it worked on television and it still does. ▶▶ You weren’t afraid to mix it up with drivers like Dale Earnhardt, Davey Allison, Mark Martin, Ernie Irvan and some kid named Jeff Gordon. What are some of your favorite on-track battles during these times? And do you sometimes miss going door to door with these racers? And do you sometimes still want to get even with Jeff?

No, not really because Jeff and I became pretty good doggone friends. In fact, we all went out as a group to Glamis, Cali., in the sand dunes. A guy named Ron Pratte, who’s a big buyer at Barrett-Jackson, hosted us all to come out there for the last 10 years. But the last three or four years, Jeff has been with us and we’ve been running sand dunes and having a good old

time. And it’s been a great way trip to be with a lot of racers, hash out things, and laugh about it.

When you were racing together and competing, it was one thing. But now when you get back to look at it, we find ourselves laughing when we do say, “I’m going to get even with you.” There’s no meanness out of anybody that I’ve seen now. Our last trip, it was me, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, and Don Prudhomme, the big drag racer.

It’s been a way to bond, so to speak. But Jeff’s definitely not one of those that I want to do that against, and I have no hard feelings at all with him. Back when I was driving, I did. But when I first started racing, guys like Richard Petty were still driving but getting ready to quit.

I did so much racing with Dale Sr. Him and I, between the two of us, we had some really good runs in the ‘90s that there’s many races that they call the “Rusty and Dale Show.” I was winning, then he’d win, then I’d win, and then he’d win. It was right in the middle of that when I was winning those Bristol, Martinsville, and road course races. In 1993, I won 10 races and in ’94, driving a Ford, I won eight races. Stuff like that, there’s so many cool guys that I got to run with.

Then the new group came on like Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson and even doggone Jeff. I mean, Jeff didn’t get going until 1992 or ’93. Before that, I was getting it done. In ’88, I had six wins. In ’89, I won the championship and got six wins. So, I was racing with a whole different group of guys before Jeff came on. But then in the later ‘90s, he was the guy. He was doing so fantastic. It was unreal.

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BY THE NUMBER

CAR NO.

41

BY K EITH WA LTZ

N

ASCAR Hall of Famers Curtis Turner and Richard Petty headline the list of racers who have won NASCAR Cup Series events driving car No. 41.

Turner visited victory lane a dozen times in cars with that number, while seven-time champion Petty recorded six of his 200 victories wheeling cars with No. 41.

2004 champion Kurt Busch (6) and Jim Paschal (3) are the other drivers with multiple wins with the number.

■■ Curtis Turner (ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images photo)

Overall statistics show that cars carrying No. 41 in the NASCAR Cup Series have visited Victory Lane 28 times while posting 287 top-10 finishes in slightly more than 1,170 starts.

Turner was the first driver to use No. 41 when he participated in the inaugural Cup Series race on June 19, 1949, at the threequarter-mile Charlotte Speedway dirt track.

Driving a 1946 Buick, turner started sixth and finished ninth.

Turner was also the first driver to win a series race in car No. 41. That victory came on Sept.

11, 1949, at the legendary Langhorne Speedway in Pennsylvania. Turner started 11th in Hubert Westmoreland’s 1949 Buick and led 60 of the 200 laps around the one-mile dirt track.

Stewart-Haas Racing has been the caretake of No. 41 since the start of the 2014 season when Busch joined the organization, and Cole Custer is currently in his rookie season aboard the team’s No. 41 Ford.

■■ 2020 – Cole Custer (Getty Images photo)

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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MEDIA RELEASE

RYAN HUFF TO PAY TRIBUTE TO SHAWN BALLUZZO AT KANSAS

A

fter sitting out the most recent ARCA Menards Series race at Iowa Speedway, rookie Ryan Huff returns to the scene this weekend with a special paint scheme for Friday night’s Dawn 150 at Kansas Speedway.

Huff’s No. 10 Fast Track Racing Ford Fusion will pay tribute to racer Shawn Balluzzo who died during the second of two Modified Division races on Jul. 11 at Langley (Va.) Speedway. Balluzzo was 64.

According to the Virginian-Pilot, Balluzzo was the winningest driver in the history of the track.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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MEDIA RELEASE Among his accolades on the track included winning 16 of 17 division races at Langley in 2019. He also had 11 track championships and a portrayed a driving style that made him one of the most respected competitors in short track racing.

Like many, Balluzzo was a mentor to many, including Huff.

An upcoming racer from Virginia, Huff, 19, spent plenty of time with Balluzzo who often offered crucial advice for Huff as he continues to climb through the ranks of Motorsports.

Huff will make his Kansas Speedway debut in the Dawn 150 but is racing in Balluzzo’s honor.

“Shawn Balluzzo meant a lot to me,” said Huff. “He always had time for me or any young driver for that matter.

I respected his advice and he taught me just as much on the track as he did off the track.

“I decided not to go to Iowa Speedway last weekend so I could go to Langley and join others and pay our respects to him. He was the definition of a true racer and I hope I can go to Kansas this weekend and not only make him proud, but my team too.”

In his most recent intermediate race, Huff earned his second career top-10 finish with a career-best eighth place effort.

Bringing the same No. 10 Shawn Balluzzo Tribute Ford Fusion that he raced at Kentucky Speedway earlier this month, Huff is optimistic he can contend for another solid finish during his rookie campaign.

“I’m always excited to get to the track and do well,” added Huff. “Kansas is another new place for me, so I plan to be respectful but being told that there is a lot of similarities between Kentucky and Kansas will hopefully be a benefit for me.

“I feel like we had a car capable of running inside the top10 at Kentucky and we did just that. I believe it’s going to be a stronger field at Kansas, but we’ll run our race and hope when the checkered flag waves – we’ll be in a good spot to be satisfied with the finish.”

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OFFICIAL NASCAR MEMBERS CLUB

A COLLECTIVE LOVE AFFAIR OHIO COUPLE BONDS THROUGH ONMC MEMBERSHIP

BY DA N GUT TENPL A N

S

ara and Jack Springer are proud to call themselves original members of the Original NASCAR Members Club.

Jack, a racing fans since the 1970s, introduced his wife to the sport in the 1980s. They both joined the Original NASCAR Members Club in its inception in the early 2000s. Through their affiliation with the club, they have been able to attend races with coveted hot passes, ride in pace cars, attend pre-race drivers meetings and get photographed with Cup Series stars like Mario Andretti, Chase Elliott, Clint Bowyer, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Erik Jones.

“We are from Ohio, so we were thrilled to hang out with the ThorSport drivers,” Sara Springer said. “So much fun!”

Another highlight of her club affiliation has been the opportunity to meet the late Lieutenant Stephen Del Bagno, who flew one of the Thunderbirds in a flyover. He later trained Bree Larson for her role in Captain Marvel.

The couple has also been able to share their experience with their children, Nick and Liz. Their favorite race memory is attending an Original NASCAR Members Club event at Daytona with all-access hot passes.

“We were all over the garages, puts, chatting with drivers, and we got a pace car ride and attended the drivers meeting,” Sara Springer said.

Jack and Sara Springer work together for TekniColour Marketing, Inc., based out of Strongsville, Ohio.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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NASCAR DEFINED COOL HAND CHASE. Chase Elliott gives a thumbs up before the Super Start Batteries 400 Presented

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

NASCAR DEFINED

STANDING AT ATTENTION. Drivers and crew members stand during pre-race ceremonies prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Super Start Batteries 400 Presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts at Kansas Speedway.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: JULY 24, 2020

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