Frontstretch Newsletter: Kevin Harvick Gets Help in the Pits as Nashville Gets Underway

Published: Fri, 06/24/22

Frontstretch Newsletter: June 24, 2022
Volume XVI, Edition CV

What to Watch: June 24-26

- NASCAR teams will all be in action today at Nashville Superspeedway. Action starts with NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice at 4 p.m. ET This was originally not going to be televised, but a change was made. That will immediately be followed by qualifying at 4:30. Both sessions will be on FOX Sports 1.

NASCAR Xfinity Series teams will have a 50-minute practice session for tomorrow's Tennessee Lottery 250 at 5:30 p.m. that will air live on USA. NASCAR Cup Series teams also get a 50-minute practice at 6:30 p.m.

Coverage of the Rackley Roofing 200 starts off with a half-hour edition of NASCAR RaceDay - CWTS Edition at 7:30 p.m. on FOX Sports 1, followed by 200 miles of Camping World Truck Series action.

Saturday has Xfinity Series qualifying at Noon ET on USA, followed by NASCAR Cup Series qualifying. Coverage of the Tennessee Lottery 250 starts with Countdown to Green at 3 p.m., followed by the race at 3:30.

Cup coverage starts with Countdown to Green Sunday at 4 p.m. This will be a Peacock exclusive. Race coverage starts at 5 p.m. on NBC.

- IMSA teams are in Watkins Glen. WeatherTech teams practice today, have their final practice and qualify tomorrow. The race is scheduled for 10:45 a.m. ET Sunday. The majority of the race will be exclusive to Peacock, but the second half of the event and post-race coverage will air live on USA starting at 2 p.m.

- ARCA Menards Series teams will race 250 laps at the three-eighths of a mile Elko Speedway in Minnesota. Coverage of the race will air live on MAVTV and FLORacing.com starting at 9:30 p.m. ET Saturday night.

- The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series continues their residency in South Dakota with two more nights of racing at Huset's Speedway in Brandon, S.D. Both nights of racing can be seen on DirtVision.tv (subscription required).

- The DIRTcar Summer Nationals continues this weekend at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, this time with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Late Model Series and the Xtreme Outlaw Series joining in.

- The Super DIRTcar Series will be racing tonight at Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, N.Y. Coverage of the Super DIRTcar Series Showdown starts at 5:45 p.m. ET.

FOLLOW THE FRONTSTRETCH THIS WEEKEND THROUGH OUR COLLEAGUES:

NASHVILLE:

Jared Haas (@RealJaredHaas)

WATKINS GLEN:

Phil Allaway (@Critic84)

Also, don't forget to follow our Twitter page, @Frontstretch as well for updates!

TV Schedule: Here

Around the World in Motorsports: June 23

- Rennsport One's Stevan McAleer was quickest in opening IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge practice Thursday afternoon at Watkins Glen International with a lap at 106.441 mph. The lap was three-hundredths of a second faster than the BMW of Turner Motorsport's Bill Auberlen. Murillo Racing teammates Eric Foss and Kenny Murillo were third and fourth in their Mercedes-AMG GT4s, while TeamTGM's Matt Plumb was fifth.

Belgard & Techniseal Racing's Denis Dupont was quickest in TCR with a lap at 104.930 mph, good for 24th overall. Dupont's lap was nearly nine-tenths of a second faster than Bryan Herta Autosport's Ryan Norman. JDC-Miller MotorSports' Mikey Taylor was third in his Audi, followed by KMW Motorsports with TMR Engineering's Tim Lewis Jr. in the sole Alfa Romeo. Mason Filippi was fifth in the No. 77 Elantra.

- Buddy Kofoid took the lead on lap 21 from James McFadden and never looked back Thursday night as he drove to his first career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series victory at Huset's Speedway. McFadden was second, then Parker Price-Miller, Brock Zearfoss and Hunter Schuerenberg.

Today's Top News:

Stewart-Haas Racing Adjusts Kevin Harvick’s Pit Crew Amid Frustrations

After the Toyota/Save Mart 350k, Kevin Harvick voiced his anger about bad stops taking him out of the hunt. Stewart-Haas Racing has made some pit crew changes to try to alleviate the issue.

BJ McLeod to Replace David Starr in Xfinity Race at Nashville

SS-Green Light Racing announced Thursday morning that BJ McLeod will drive the No. 08 Ford in place of David Starr this weekend at Nashville Superspeedway after Starr came down with the flu.

Stephen Mallozzi to Attempt Truck Debut With RBR

Reaume Brothers Racing announced Thursday that Stephen Mallozzi will attempt to make his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in two weeks in the team's No. 43.

Bobby Labonte on Pole for SRX Heat 1 at South Boston

Via random draw, Bobby Labonte has earned the pole position for the opening heat for the Camping World SRX Series at South Boston Speedway.

Photos are courtesy of Nigel Kinrade Photography and our own Tom Bowles.

Have news for Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com with a promising lead or tip.

Newsletter Exclusives:

Frontstretch Folio: Ally 400

by Phil Allaway

This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series travels to Central Tennessee to make their second visit to Nashville Superspeedway. Coverage of the Ally 400 begins with Countdown to Green at 4 p.m. ET Sunday on Peacock. Race coverage starts at 5 p.m. ET on NBC with a green flag around 5:15. The race can also be heard on PRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).

Records and facts

Last year's Ally 400 was dominated by Kyle Larson. He started fifth and got himself to the lead by lap 6. Once there, he didn't relinquish it much as he led 264 of 300, including the final 78 to win. Ross Chastain was 4.335 seconds behind in second, thanks to an alternate pit strategy. William Byron was third, then Aric Almirola and Kevin Harvick.

The track has hosted 22 Xfinity Series races in the past. Carl Edwards is the winningest driver there with five victories, including three in a row at one point. Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and Scott Riggs have two a piece. Among Cup drivers, Harvick, Keselowski and Kyle Busch each have wins there.

There have also been 14 Camping World Truck Series races on the concrete tri-oval. Johnny Benson and Kyle Busch each had two victories, while nine other drivers each scored one. Ryan Preece won the most recent truck race there last year.

Track Facts
Track / Race Length: 1.33-mile tri-oval, 300 laps (399 miles)
Banking: 14 degrees

Frontstretch: 2,250 ft., banked 9 degrees

Backstretch: 1,330 ft., banked 6 degrees

Grandstand Seating: 38,000

Pit Road Speed: 45 mph
Pace Car Speed: 55 mph
Opened: 1997

Website: http://www.nashvillesuperspeedway.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NashvilleSuperspeedway/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NashvilleSuperS

Pre-Race Schedule:

Practice: Friday, June 24, 6:30 - 7:20 p.m. on USA

Qualifying: Saturday, June 25, 1:10 p.m. on USA

Say What?!

"Nashville Superspeedway kicked off my NASCAR Cup Series career. One of my first Cup tests was at Nashville. I remember going there to test with the team leading into the season and having a really good time. We won there in the NASCAR Truck Series and finished third there in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with KHI. We had fun at Nashville. It was a good track for me. I didn’t feel like the Cup race at Nashville was as good for our team as I had expected going into the race. We finished decent. I think we were 12th. But I know we are capable of running better than that at Nashville so I’m looking forward to going back." - Austin Dillon

"I think last year’s race at Nashville [Superspeedway] was a ‘learn as you go’ type of situation. With so few people having experience there, and even my short stint in the [Camping World] Truck Series race that weekend, we still didn’t know a lot of what to expect. We ended up having a really solid run though and that does offer some extra confidence for this weekend. You don’t want to be overly confident, though. Just because you had a good finish, that was last year’s car, and the Next Gen car handles differently. We have a starting point, and we’ll use practice on Friday to really dial the race setup in. Nashville presents its own challenges though as it looks like a superspeedway but it’s more similar to a short track in how tight the corners are." - William Byron

"I think it’s a cool racetrack and a cool venue. I raced there a lot over the years in the ARCA Series, the Camping World Truck Series, as well as the Xfinity Series. I’ve had my fair share of races there and also my fair share of wins there. I was able to win the Xfinity Series race there last year, but we struggled a bit with our Cup car there. It’s a whole new ballgame with the new car there this year to see what is going to make our car fast. I think racing in Nashville fits with our sport because NASCAR and country music are kind of synonymous with each other. It’s a great opportunity to race there and we’ll do our best to get our PEDIGREE Camry to victory lane. Really proud to have PEDIGREE on board this weekend and all their work to help dogs find forever homes." - Kyle Busch

"I had a lot of fun at Nashville last year. I think we were fastest in practice. We had a tech issue, so we didn’t get to qualify, but I finished second in the race. It seemed like we were pretty fast last year right off the bat, so I’m excited for it. I think the resin on the racetrack made it really fun. Watching stuff in the past it seemed like it was really on the bottom, just one lane, so I think NASCAR did a really good job with the racetrack. Honestly, I’m super excited to go back." - Todd Gilliland

Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com. Photo is courtesy of Nigel Kinrade Photography.

Today at Frontstretch:

4 Burning Questions: Chicago Street Course or Chicagoland?

by Stephen Stumpf

Friday Faceoff: Should Helio Castroneves Make His Cup Debut at Daytona?

by the Frontstretch Staff

Fire on Fridays: NBC, Please Do This for Your Half of the NASCAR Season

by Michael Massie

Stock Car Scoop: Will Nashville Be More Competitive in 2022?

with Adam Cheek and Jack Swansey

NASCAR 101: A 2022 "Halfway" Season Recap

by Adam Cheek

SRX Preview: South Boston Speedway

by Michael Finley

Monday at Frontstretch.com:

We'll have recaps and breakdowns of all the action from Nashville, Watkins Glen, Elko and South Boston.

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