RCR Event Preview – Watkins Glen

Richard Childress Racing at Watkins Glen International … Richard Childress Racing has two NASCAR Cup Series victories at Watkins Glen. Robby Gordon won the 2003 event, his third victory with RCR over the span of three seasons. Kevin Harvick captured the 2006 event at the New York road course, edging Tony Stewart for the victory, his first win at Watkins Glen. Dale Earnhardt also won three poles (1990, 1992, 1996). RCR drivers have racked up eight top-five and 22 top-10 finishes in 77 starts at Watkins Glen. 

RCR in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Watkins Glen International … RCR has captured one victory in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition at Watkins Glen: Kevin Harvick (2007). Harvick dominated the race, leading 49 of 82 laps and led a 1-2 finish for the Welcome, N.C., based team with Jeff Burton scoring a second-place finish. RCR owns nine top-five and 22 top-10 finishes at the 2.45-mile road course.

Introducing the Carolina Cowboys … Driven by the same passion for performance that guides his race team, Richard Childress’ latest endeavor brings Professional Bull Riding to the Carolinas. The Carolina Cowboys represent Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in the PBR Team Series, an elite new league featuring the world’s top bull riders in games that began in July 2022. The team is operated by Richard Childress Racing with 2018 Daytona 500 Champion Austin Dillon serving as General Manager. The fourth game of the inaugural PBR Team Series season is scheduled for this weekend, August 19-21, in Nashville, Tennessee.

Don’t miss the Carolina Cowboys … The Carolina Cowboys’ inaugural “Cowboy Days” Home Stand is scheduled for September 9-11 at Wake Forest’s Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Friends of RCR have the opportunity to save 15% on tickets by entering code RCR15. To purchase tickets, click here: https://www.ticketmaster.com/pbr-professional-bull-riders-tickets/artist/2859854?venueId=369555

Catch the Action … The NASCAR Xfinity Series Sunoco Go Rewards 200 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International will be televised live Saturday, August 20, beginning at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network and the NBC Sports App. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. 

Follow Sunday’s Action at Watkins Glen … The NASCAR Cup Series Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International will be televised live on Sunday, August 21 beginning at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network and the NBC Sports App. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. 

This Week’s No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Watkins Glen International … Austin Dillon has made seven career starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Watkins Glen, posting a career-best 15th-place finish in August 2021. Dillon has made four appearances at Watkins Glen in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, securing his best finish of 12th in 2013. He also finished 12th in a NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Division race at Watkins Glen in 2008.

Tracker Off Road … Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 prominently features TRACKER ATVs, a game-changing new line of all-terrain vehicles and side-by-sides offering breakthrough performance, service and value in the off-road industry. TRACKER OFF ROAD was born out of a powerhouse partnership formed between Bass Pro Shops and TRACKER founder Johnny Morris and Textron Specialized Vehicles, bringing together the undisputed world leader in boating with a global leader in innovation and technology.

Bass Pro Shops … Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops acquired Cabela’s to create a “best-of-the-best” experience with superior products, dynamic locations and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America’s Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as “one of America’s Best Employers.” Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit http://www.basspro.com/.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

How do you prepare for a racetrack like Watkins Glen International?

“A lot of time in the simulator, going over notes and watching old races. We try to make sure we are putting in the work beforehand. We’ve been working really hard on our road course program the last few years. Watkins Glen is a really fast, aggressive track. You can gain a lot by getting after it on the braking zones and it’s just a high-speed place with all of the grip in the pavement.”

We’re at another road course race this weekend, is this another wild card?

“Yeah, for sure. The road courses have turned into wildcard races. Taking care of your stuff, trying to make it to the end of these things becomes a demo-derby out there. This is going to be one of those ones that if you stay on track, you’re going to have a pretty good run. I have a lot of optimism going into Watkins Glen this year, though, because our road course program has been solid and we’ve put a lot of work in during the off season.”

This Week’s KCMG Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Watkins Glen International…Tyler Reddick will be making his second NASCAR Cup Series start at Watkins Glen International this weekend. Reddick scored a 10th-place finish in his first Cup start at the 2.45-mile road course in 2021. He has two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Watkins Glen, scoring a fifth-place finish in the 2019 event.

Road Course Prowess … Reddick has more wins (2, at Road America and the Indianapolis Road Course) and more top-fives (3) than any other driver in the Cup Series on road courses this season. Reddick dominated the weekend at Indy, winning the pole position, leading the most laps (38 of 86) and winning the race. His average running position at Indy was a sizzling 3.69, best of all drivers. 

KCMG and Reddick No Strangers to Success on the Track … KCMG celebrated their first NASCAR win in 2019 when Tyler Reddick drove to victory lane at Michigan International Speedway enroute to his second consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship. KCMG and Richard Childress Racing first partnered together in 2017 with the goal of introducing KCMG into the NASCAR industry as a new motorsports parts manufacturer.

About KCMG … KC Motorgroup Ltd. (KCMG) is an international motorsport services group established in 2007 by Dr. Paul Ip. The group, with its headquarters located in Hong Kong, has operations reaching across Europe and the Asia Pacific region. KCMG operates closely with many partner companies and racing organizations around the world to provide unrivalled Motorsport Services, Equipment, Team Management and quality distributorship in the Automotive Industry. 2013 saw KCMG become the first Chinese outfit ever to race at the world famous Le Mans 24 Hours in its 90-year history and participate in the FIA World Endurance Championship. The Hong Kong-based team later on took an historic LMP2 victory at Le Mans and was Vice Champion in FIA WEC in 2015. With years in the motorsport industry, KCMG has been involved in a wide range of Formula, GT and Le Mans prototype endurance racing series across the globe. For more information please visit www.kcmg.com.hk or email [email protected].

TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:

What doe you think about Watkins Glen International?

“Watkins Glen is what I would call the mile-and-a half of road courses so it’s going to be a bit different than Road America and Indianapolis. You can’t take one thing and apply it to every road course. Watkins Glen has a lot of grip and the speeds are going to be really high. Qualifying is important at a lot of these road courses but I think this will be the most important qualifying session on a road course this year. Aero is really going to come into play. We’re going to have to be on our A-game with our KCMG Chevrolet and really execute our qualifying lap. It’s a tricky track with a lot of grip. We’re going to be going through the Bus Stop faster than ever before. I’m excited about it because our speed has been good this season. We’ll see how it stacks up.”

Does Watkins Glen lend itself to the same kind of aggression as Indianapolis or Circuit of the Americas? 

“It definitely doesn’t because the minimum speeds are much higher at Watkins Glen. The corners at Indy or Turn 5 at Road America and COTA, a lot of those corners are sharper and the speeds are a lot lower. We kind of seen with this Next Gen car you really couldn’t move someone out of the way with how this diffuser affects the air of the car behind you when you try and bump somebody. I think people will be diving in there on each other to get position door-to-door, but I don’t think it’s going to play out like it did at Indy. Indy is kind of unique situation because of the shape of that first corner.”

This Week’s Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Camaro SS at Watkins Glen International … Sheldon Creed will make his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Watkins Glen International on Saturday. The 2.450-mile New York road course will mark the fifth road-course race so far in 2022. Creed had a strong showing at the first road-course race at Circuit of the Americas, starting sixth and finishing 10th. At Portland International Raceway, Road America and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Creed was running in the top 10 when he was involved in on-track incidents. At Road America, Creed suffered an engine issue. Creed finished third last season at Watkins Glen in the Truck Series after starting 19th.

Whelen Celebrates 70 Years … From a small garage workshop in Connecticut in 1952 to a worldwide leader in emergency warning equipment today, Whelen Engineering continues to push the boundaries of innovation. As we mark our 70th anniversary, we’re proud to continue our founder’s mission of making it safer for those who serve and protect. Whelen has been manufacturing in America for 70 years—we never left, and we’re here to stay.

About Whelen … Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce.

SHELDON CREED QUOTE:

We’re heading to Watkins Glen this weekend. Are you looking forward to the challenge?

“I actually can’t wait to get to Watkins Glen. It’s one of my favorite road courses. I finished third there last season in a truck and I have always really like the track. My biggest challenge heading into this weekend will be qualifying well because track position is so important at a road course like Watkins Glen. My team and I will have a good plan heading into qualifying because we know the importance of a strong starting spot. We’ve qualified decent and we’ve had fast cars, we have just got caught up in some messes in the last few weeks. I’m looking forward to getting to The Glen and showing what our 2 team is capable of.”

This Week’s Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet Camaro SS at Watkins Glen International … Austin Hill will make his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Watkins Glen International on Saturday. The 2.450-mile New York road course will mark the fifth road-course race so far in 2022. Hill has had very positive results at every road course so far this season. At Circuit of the Americas, Hill started eighth and finished runner-up; he went on to start second and finish third at Portland International Raceway. At Road America, Hill started 10th and finished fourth and most recently, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, he started ninth and finished in the same position. He has never finished outside of the top 10 at a road course this year and is currently on an eight-race top-10 finish streak, including his second win of the season at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Hill won at Watkins Glen last season in the Truck Series. He started on the pole and led 35 of 61 laps en route to the victory.

About Bennett Family of Companies … McDonough, Ga.-based Bennett Family of Companies is a woman-owned, Women’s Enterprise Business Council (WBENC) certified, diversified transportation and logistics company. Through its 12 affiliated operating companies, the Bennett Family of Companies delivers integrated transportation and supply chain management solutions worldwide. The company will use race experiences to recruit and retain hundreds of truck drivers for their organization in 2022. For more information, visit www.Drive4Bennett.com.

AUSTIN HILL QUOTE:

You’ve been really strong at road courses this season. Are you excited to get to Watkins Glen this weekend?

“I can’t wait to get to Watkins Glen this weekend, it’s one of my favorite tracks. I’ve just always run really well there, especially back in my K&N days. I came close to winning a couple times, but something always happened. I finally got the win last season in the Truck Series. It’s a fast track that you have to keep your momentum up at. My team has been so close to a win at every road course this season so we’re going to keep doing what we’ve been doing and hopefully we’ll park it in Victory Lane. I had a nice off-weekend with the family but I’m more than ready to get back to the racetrack. The momentum couldn’t be any higher as we are approaching the Playoffs. Road courses have been a strength of mine this season so I’m really excited.”