2016-07-26

Analyzing the Velocity Prairie Thunder 250

 

Pinty's Stat Advance: Saskatoon

Analyzing the Velocity Prairie Thunder 250

                            

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 26, 2016) – The 2016 NASCAR Pinty's Series will conclude its annual western swing with the Velocity Prairie Thunder 250 on Wednesday at Wyant Group Raceway in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Below is a statistical look at the performance of the series and selected drivers at the track:

 

Velocity Prairie Thunder 250 Setup:

• With his win last Saturday at Edmonton International Raceway in the first leg of the annual western swing, Alex Tagliani has now won two races in a row for the first time in his NPS career and has three wins this season. He'll try to make the sweep at Wyant Group Raceway.

• Previous drivers to complete a sweep of western swing events include: J.R. Fitzpatrick (2007), D.J. Kennington (2012-three races) and Steckly (2013 & 2015).

• Andrew Ranger (CTMP & ICAR) and Alex Labbe (Chaudiere) join Tagliani (Sunset, Toronto and Edmonton) as drivers to win so far this season in the series. 

 

At Wyant Group Raceway:

• The track opened in 2006 and is currently owned by a group of racing enthusiasts and operated by a mostly volunteer staff.

• Has played host to the NASCAR Pinty's Series each year since 2009.

• That 2009 inaugural event was the first appearance for the series in the province of Saskatchewan.

• Scott Steckly won the inaugural 2009 race, and was victorious again there in 2013 and 2015.

• The previous seven events have produced four different pole winners and race winners.

• Mark Dilley, Jason Hathaway, D.J. Kennington and Scott Steckly have participated in all seven previous events, and all except Steckly are expected to extend the streak this week.

• Dodge has been the winning manufacturer in all seven previous events.

 

Wyant Group Raceway Data

Race #:  7 of 12

Track Layout:  .333-mile asphalt oval

Banking/Turns:  progressive from 5-11 degrees

Race Length:  250 laps (83.25 miles)

TV Coverage: Aug. 6, 4:30 p.m. ET; RDS – Sept. 3, 1:30 p.m. ET

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2015 Race Winner:  Scott Steckly

2015 Pole Winner:  Scott Steckly

Qualifying Record:  Scott Steckly, Dodge, 82.020 mph, 14.616 secs., July 16, 2014

 

Active Category Leaders at Wyant Group Raceway:

Wins

1. D.J. Kennington … 2

2. L.P. Dumoulin … 1

 

Poles

1. D.J. Kennington … 2

 

Top Fives

1. D.J. Kennington … 5

2. Mark Dilley … 4

    Jason Hathaway … 4

 

Top 10s

1. D.J. Kennington … 6

2. Jason Hathaway … 6

3. Mark Dilley … 5

 

Laps Led

1. D.J. Kennington … 336

2. Jason Hathaway … 142

3. Andrew Ranger … 92

 

Laps Completed

1. D.J. Kennington … 1,701

2. Mark Dilley … 1,696

    Jason Hathaway … 1,696

 

Starts

1. Mark Dilley … 7

    Jason Hathaway … 7

    D.J. Kennington … 7

 

Select Driver Highlights:

Mark Dilley (No. 02 Johnsonville/Leland/Dickies Ford)

• Has three wins, three poles, 35 top fives and 54 top 10s in 94 career NASCAR Pinty's Series starts.

• All of his wins and poles have come on ovals, where he has 44 top 10s and an average finish of ninth in 71 starts.

• Has participated in all seven previous events at Wyant Group Raceway, where he's posted five top 10s, an average finish of sixth and a best result of second in both 2012 and 2013.

 

Noel Dowler (No. 53 MFP/Empire Mechanical Dodge)

• The Sherwood Park, Alberta native has made 50 series starts with 1 top-five and 20 top-10 finishes.

• Finished third at Barrie in 2012 for his best finish to date.

• Has made five starts with three top-10 finishes and he came home sixth last season and in 2013 at WGR.

 

L.P. Dumoulin (No. 47 WeatherTech Canada/Bellemare Dodge)

• The 2014 NPS Champion and 2011 Rookie of the Year has four wins, a pole, 26 top fives and 40 top 10s in 65 career starts..

• Has an average finish of eighth in four WGR appearances, highlighted by his first career oval win in 2014.

 

Jason Hathaway (No. 3 Fast Eddie/Choko/HGC Chevrolet)

• Has eight wins, 32 top-five and 70 top 10s in 115 career starts. Is one of two drivers to compete in every race in NPS history.

• Seven of his eight series wins have come on an oval track. His lone road course win came at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park last year.

• Has four top-five and six top 10s with an average finish of fifth and a best result of second (2014 & 2105) in the seven previous WGR events.

 

D.J. Kennington (No. 17 Castrol Edge Dodge)

• The 2010 and 2012 NPS champion. Currently is tied for second in all-time NPS career wins (19), top fives (75) and top 10s (95), and is one of two drivers to start each of the 115 all-time events. Also ranks second in series history in laps led (2,797) and fifth in poles (11).

• Has two wins (2010, `12), two poles (`10, `11) and an average finish of fifth at WGR, where he's finished in the top-10 in six of the seven previous events held there.

 

Gary Klutt (No. 59 Pioneer Family Pools/PoolSuppliesCanada.ca Dodge)

• Has a win, a pole and 14 top 10s in 23 career NPS starts. Both the pole and win came in last year's season-opener at CTMP.

• Has six top-10 finishes in 11 career oval track starts.

• This will be the NASCAR Next driver's second start at the track. He finished 14th last year.

 

Alex Labbe (No. 36 Can-Am/Kappa/Cyclops Gear Dodge)

• Has one win (Chaudiere – 2016) five poles, seven top fives and 11 top 10s in 20 career starts.

• In seven oval track starts he has one win, three poles, three top-five and four top 10s.

• This will be his first start at WGR.

 

Kevin Lacroix (No. 74 Bumper To Bumper/Total/Go Fast Dodge)

• Has two wins, five top-five and six top-10 finishes in 11 career starts.

• Recorded two wins in seven starts during his debut season in 2015. Won road races at Circuit ICAR and Circuit de Trois-Rivieres.

• Is the first driver in series history to record two victories in rookie season.

• Became the first driver in the history of the series to win a caution-free race last season at ICAR in his first start at the track.

• This will be his first start at the Saskatoon track.

 

Cayden Lapcevich (No. 76 Fastline Motorsports Dodge)

• Has made 11 career starts in the NASCAR Pinty's Series and recorded his career-best second-place finish twice this season Sunset Speedway on June 18th and Chaudiere on June 24th.

• Enters this weekend second in the points standings behind Andrew Ranger. He'll make his debut at Wyant Group Raceway this Wednesday.

 

Andrew Ranger (No. 27 Mopar/Pennzoil Dodge)

• The 2007 and 2009 NPS champion and after his wins this season at CTMP and most recently at ICAR, holds the record for all-time wins with 22 and tied for first in poles (18). Has 51 top fives and 75 top 10s in 89 career starts.

• Scored his best finish to date last year at WGR in third and his three other appearances at the track he's registered finishes of eighth, sixth and fourth.

 

Alex Tagliani (No. 18 EpiPen/Riobel/Complexe JCP/Juste du Chevrolet)

• Has five wins, six poles and 14 top fives, 23 top 10s in 39 career NPS starts.

• Two of his four wins at have come on the ovals (Sunset Speedway 2015-16).

• Finished seventh in 2015 and fifth in his first career appearance at WGR in 2014.

 

Other Driver Notes

• Joey McColm will make his second start of the season at WGR. He's made three previous starts at the .333-mile track with one top-10 finish.

• Kindersley, Saskatchewan driver Jason Hankewich returns this week in his second start of the year. He has two previous starts at WGR.

 

Up To Speed:

• The 2016 season is the first for new series sponsor Pinty's and the 10th overall for the Canadian-based NASCAR division.

• The 2016 schedule features 12 races at 11 different tracks across five provinces and a return to the road course in Toronto as part of the IndyCar weekend in July.

• Quebec native Andrew Ranger took the lead on the penultimate lap of the season opening race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park to score the win.

• Alex Tagliani made Quebec drivers two-for-two this season after he won the Leland Industries 300 at Sunset Speedway for his third career series victory.

• Alex Labbe won from the pole last weekend in an exciting finish with rookie Cayden Lapcevich. It was Labbe's first career win.

• Andrew Ranger retook the points lead and also became the first multi-race winner of the season with his third win at ICAR two weeks ago.

• Alex Tagliani was able to hold off Andrew Ranger in a green-white-checkered finish in the series return to the road course in Toronto for his second win of the season.

• Alex Tagliani took the lead on Lap 88 and remained out front the rest of the way to score his second consecutive win and third of the season at Edmonton. Tagliani will try and become the first driver since Scott Steckly in 2013 to win three NPS races in a row.

 

Contact:
Tim Southers
NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications


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Posted by Marc Patrick Roy at 26.7.16 0 comments

NASCAR K&N Pro Series News & Notes: Iowa

NASCAR K&N Pro Series News & Notes: Iowa
Annual Combination Event Highlights Best of the East and West

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 26, 2016) — It's become a tradition. Each summer the NASCAR K&N Pro Series teams from both of its East and West converge upon Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa, and engage in a head-to-head battle. And though separate points will be handed out at the end of the Casey's General Store 150 presented by Vatterott College on Friday night, make no mistake: this one's about bragging rights.

There have been a total of 13 previous combination races at Iowa, with at least one race being held at the track each season since 2007, with the first seven overall winners coming from the East. As the two series converge on the biggest stage of the season for K&N Pro Series teams, Justin Haley holds a commanding 40-point lead over Kyle Benjamin in the East standings, while Ryan Partridge nurses a slim three-point cushion over Todd Gilliland in the West.

Since 2012, when Corey LaJoie won at Iowa to lead a charge of East teams sweeping the top eight positions, the West has rebounded in a big way. West teams have won three of the last six combination events at the .875-mile, D-shaped oval, capped by a dominant 2015. Driving for West series staple Bill McAnally Racing, Brandon McReynolds won both of the races at Iowa last season from front row starting positions.

If that wasn't enough to show the playing field at Iowa has been leveled, the battles behind McReynolds certainly were. Three of the top six finishers in this race a year ago were West drivers, while the previous visit to the track earlier in the season produced three of the top seven at the checkered flag representative of the West.

RACE: Casey's General Store 150 presented by Vatterott College

PLACE: Iowa Speedway, Newton, Iowa

DATE: Friday, July 29

TIME: 8 p.m. CT

TV SCHEDULE: NBCSN, Friday, August 5, 2 p.m. ET

TRACK LAYOUT: .875-mile D-shaped oval

2015 WINNER: Brandon McReynolds

2015 POLE WINNER: Brandon McReynolds

EVENT SCHEDULE: Friday, July 29 – Garage opens: 8 a.m.; Practice: 12-1 p.m.; Final Practice: 2-3 p.m.; Driver autograph session: 3:15 p.m.; Qualifying: 5 p.m.; Casey's General Store 150: 8 p.m.

TRACK CONTACT: Edward Williams, (641) 791-8038, ewilliams@iowaspeedway.com

TWITTER: @IowaSpeedway

EVENT HASHTAG: #Caseys150

NASCAR IMC CONTACT: Brooke Franceschini, (386) 631-6142), bfranceschini@nascar.com.

 

Fast Facts:

The Race: The Casey's General Store 150 will be the 10th of 14 races on the 2016 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East schedule and will be the series' 14th visit to Iowa Speedway. It is also the eighth of 14 races on the 2016 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West schedule and will be the 15th race for the series at Iowa.

 

The Procedure: The starting field is 36 cars, including provisionals. The first 28 cars will qualify through the two-lap time trial process while the remaining eight spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 150 laps, spanning 131.25 miles, and there will be a five-minute break at or near the conclusion of Lap 75. Note: Each driver will be credited with a finish and points respective to the series they've designated.

 

The Track: This is the 14th combination race for the K&N Pro Series at the 0.875-mile D-shaped oval dating back to May 2007. There has been at least one race held at the track in each season since. Designed by Rusty Wallace, it plays host to NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races annually.

 

Race Winners: There have been 12 different winners in the 13 combination races held at Iowa, with Brandon McReynolds being the only multi-time winner at the track after sweeping the two races there in 2015. NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Kyle Busch won there in 2009, while 2015 Daytona 500 winner Joey Logano won the inaugural event in 2007.

 

Records: The one-lap series qualifying record at Iowa was established by Kyle Busch on May 17, 2009 at 135.484 mph (23.250 seconds). The 150-lap race record was set by Ben Rhodes on May 17, 2014 at 93.287 mph (1 hour, 24 minutes, 25 seconds).


Casey's General Store 150 Notes:

Winner, Winner: Many of the drivers who have won in K&N Pro Series competition at Iowa Speedway have gone on to find success in NASCAR national series rides. 2015 Daytona 500 winner Joey Logano won the inaugural K&N Pro Series event at Iowa in 2007, followed by Brian Ickler and Kyle Busch in 2008 and 2009, respectively. Chase Elliott's first career NASCAR win came at Iowa in 2012, and current NASCAR Xfinity Series competitor Brandon Jones won at the track in 2014. NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers Ben Rhodes and Cole Custer have also made trips to Victory Lane at Iowa in K&N Pro Series combination races.

 

Big-Time BMR: It's been the Bill McAnally Racing show in the K&N Pro Series West this season, with BMR teams scoring wins in five of the first seven races of the year. Todd Gilliland picked up his third win of the season in the most recent event at Stateline Speedway in Idaho, while defending series champion Chris Eggleston won back-to-back races at California's Orange Show Speedway and Colorado National Speedway. Yet, even with all the trips to Victory Lane, BMR teams are still chasing Bruncati Racing driver Ryan Partridge, who leads Gilliland by three points heading to Iowa.

 

Finchum Returns: Chad Finchum is set for his third K&N Pro Series East appearance of the season this weekend at Iowa. Finchum's first start of the season with the Eric McClure-owned No. 33 team was a dominant one, as Finchum led 112 laps en route to winning the PittLite 125 Bristol Motor Speedway in April. The Knoxville, Tennessee, driver also competed at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

 

Gragson Heads West: Noah Gragson, runner-up for the K&N Pro Series West championship in 2015, has declared for the West this week at Iowa. The Las Vegas, Nevada, driver has competed full-time in the East this season, scoring his first win at Stafford, Connecticut, in June. Gragson has run every race in both the East and West divisions thus far in 2016 — all for team owner Jerry Pitts — and he currently sits third in the East standings and fourth in the West standings.

 

Little Set To Compete: Jesse Little, the second-generation driver out of Sherrills Ford, North Carolina, will attempt his third start of the season at Iowa. Little, who competed at Mobile and Loudon this season, was credited with the East win in this race a year ago after finishing second to Brandon McReynolds while driving a Hattori Racing Enterprises entry.

 

Feels Like The First Time: Through the first nine races of the season, there have been eight different NASCAR K&N Pro Series East winners — including seven first-time winners. Noah Gragson became the seventh first-time winner added to the list when he won the Stafford 150 at Stafford Motor Speedway in June. Gragson used a bold three-wide move on a green-white-checkered restart to claim his first career win in his 19th career start.

 

NASCAR Home Tracks: Companion event at Iowa Speedway

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series joins the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Iowa Speedway this weekend. The U.S. Cellular 250 is scheduled for Saturday night.

 

Contact:

Brooke Franceschini     

NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications


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Posted by Marc Patrick Roy at 26.7.16 0 comments

Wood Returns to Airborne Park Speedway

Wood Returns to Airborne Park Speedway


PLATTSBURGH- It's been nearly three years since Plattsburgh's Robin Wood collected a checkerd flag at Airborne Park Speedway. Wood will make that return this Saturday night as a part of the "Canadian Invasion" of the Autodrome St-Eustache Limited Late Models. 
              Wood was a regular at Airborne until car count dwindled in the Limited Late Model division and forced the speedway to do away with the division. The following season, he decided to travel to St-Eustache and continue to run his Limited Late Model. 
              "I'm excited to be back," Wood said. "It's been almost three years."
              The race this weekend will be the second leg of a Triple Crown for the Canadian series. Autodrome Montmagny was the site of the first series race and Wood was victorious, giving him the edge coming into Airborne. 
              In addition to the point advantage, Wood arguably has an advantage this weekend as he will have more laps on the local half-mile than the rest of the field.
              "I think I have an advantage on the track with the amount of laps I've turned in my career, but this is a new rules package with the Limited Late Models compared to what we previously ran here so our old notes won't be as useful."
              Some other notable drivers that will compete this weekend include two time St-Eustache track champion the "sheriff" Jean-Francois Bouvrette in his number 38, former American Canadian Tour driver Martin Lacombe in the number 03 and Martin Feauteux in his number 10. 
              "All three of those drivers have experience at Airborne," Wood noted. "Those guys competed in the American vs. Canadian challenge a few years back, they'll be good competition."
              The Ernie's Discount Tools Sportsman Modifieds, Jeffords Steel Renegades and Busch Beer Mini Mods will also be in action for regular distance races. 
              Racing action will be at 7 with main gates opening at 4. Pit gates will open at 3. Ticket prices will be $12 for adults, $3 for kids age (6-12) and $25 for a family of two adults and two kids. For more information, visit our web page www.airborneparkspeedway.com or our Facebook at Airborne Park Speedway.


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Posted by Marc Patrick Roy at 26.7.16 0 comments

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