RCR Race Preview: Circuit of The Americas

Richard Childress Racing at Circuit of The Americas… RCR has four starts at the 3.41-mile, 20-turn road course in Austin, Texas with one top-five and three top-10 finishes led by Tyler Reddick’s fifth-place finish in 2022. Reddick also won the pole for the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race at Circuit of The Americas, his first-ever Cup Series pole.

RCR in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Circuit of The Americas… RCR has three starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Circuit of The Americas led by Austin Hill’s second-place finish in 2022. The Welcome, N.C., company has one top-five and two top-10 finishes.

Did You Know? Since NASCAR began competing at the Austin, Texas, road course, RCR drivers have every possible lap in all NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series races at the track (384 laps, 1,309.44 miles).  

Catch Saturday’s Action… The Pit Boss 250 at Circuit of The Americas will be televised live on Saturday, March 25 at 5 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. 

Follow Sunday’s Action in Austin… The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix will be televised live on Sunday, March 26 beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, and FOX Deportes. The race will also be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Circuit of The Americas… Austin Dillon has two previous NASCAR Cup Series starts at Circuit of The Americas, finishing 10th in last year’s event and earning a 12th-place finish in 2021. Dillon also has experience at the track competing in the World Racing League endurance races in December 2020, 2021 and 2022, most recently winning the event with teammates Kyle Busch and Sheldon Creed. Dillon has also enjoyed COTA as a fan at a Moto GP race.

Delivering Performance on the Track and For the Planet… Dillon will race the Get Bioethanol Chevy at Circuit of The Americas, showcasing the performance benefits of racing with earth kind and engine smart bioethanol blended fuel, Sunoco Green E15. Whether it’s delivering cleaner and cooler high-octane on the racetrack or a more affordable option for summer road trips, plant-based bioethanol makes a positive impact on our planet. NASCAR drivers have raced more than 20 million NASCAR miles driven on Sunoco Green E15, a notable milestone for the environment as NASCAR’s partnership with Get Bioethanol has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent across its three national touring series while also increasing horsepower on the track. Learn more about bioethanol at getbioethanol.com.

A Historic Test… Dillon was one of three NASCAR Cup Series drivers who participated in a Goodyear Tire Test at North Wilkesboro Speedway this week in preparation for this year’s NASCAR All-Star Race, which is scheduled for Sunday, May 21. It marked the first time NASCAR Cup Series cars have been on the track since the last race there in October 1996.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

What are your thoughts heading into COTA. It can be a difficult track for drivers.

“COTA is a tough racetrack. It’s got a lot of different corners. Every corner connects to each other, and now with less downforce it’s going to be an interesting race to see how it plays out. We’ve had some success recently on road courses so we’ll be heading to COTA with the goal of backing up some of the runs we’ve had on road courses of late. Last year, Richard Childress Racing brought two fast Chevrolets. We finished 10th and the No. 8 car finished fifth, so we have a very fast road course setup.”

What makes COTA so difficult?

“COTA can be challenging because I feel like it has multiple road courses in one, and it’s one of the biggest tracks we go to. Overall, we all have less experience at COTA than many of the other tracks on the schedule, even though we’ve raced there for a few years now. It makes our simulator time that much more important. My confidence is definitely higher heading into these road course races now compared to early in my career. We’re really focused on being aggressive with the adjustments to the car and how I drive in the race.”

Kyle Busch and the No. 8 Netspend Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Circuit of The Americas… Kyle Busch has one top-10 finish (10th-place in 2021) in two previous NASCAR Cup Series starts at Circuit of The Americas. His best starting position is fourth and the driver of the Netspend Chevrolet has led 12 laps and completed all 123 possible laps in those two starts. He won from the pole position in his only NASCAR Xfinity Series race at the 3.41-mile road course in 2021, leading 35 of 46 laps. He has one previous start at Circuit of The Americas in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, a third-place effort in 2022.

Road Course Prowess… In 47 career road course starts in NASCAR Cup Series competition, Busch has four wins (two at Sonoma Raceway and two at Watkins Glen International) plus 16 top-fives and 25 top-10 finishes.

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Get To The Points… Busch is seventh in the NASCAR Cup Series driver standings, 24 points behind the leader. The driver of the Netspend Chevrolet claimed an eighth-place finish this past weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, his third top-10 in five races this season.  

Test Those Tires… Busch and the No. 8 team participated in a Goodyear Tire Test at Circuit of The Americas in January.

KYLE BUSCH QUOTES:

What’s it like racing a stock car at a track like Circuit of The Americas?

“I enjoy road course racing and COTA is really fun. It’s obviously high prestige with it being a Formula One track, so it’s nice to have a shot on a big stage like that. Our cars are really big, really heavy and it makes for a big challenge getting those vehicles around the track fast. There’s a lot of rhythm sections to the esses and down through the back area in the stadium section. It really is tough to get a car that has a really good set up for there. Our big, heavy stock cars are a challenge to try and slow them down in the braking zones. We obviously have to brake much earlier than many other divisions that get to race there but it still makes it for a fun road course.”

Has road course racing gotten more difficult in the NASCAR Cup Series?

“Road course racing has definitely gotten a lot tighter and the competition level has increased for sure. It used to be easy to go to a track and think that you can come away with a top-five finish. Now you go to a road course and you think you can come out of there with a top-10 finish and you’re hoping for a top-five finish. I think a lot of it, obviously, has to do with driver preparation. Everybody is getting more accustomed to road racing and with more road courses on our schedule plus the parity within the car and everybody running much of the same stuff. You don’t really have teams that are able to splurge on brakes or suspension components and things like that to make your stuff better than someone else’s. That makes it tough.” 

Was the extra track time during the off-season Goodyear tire test at Circuit of The Americas a help to you when preparing for the Cup race?

“Getting to go to COTA and run the Goodyear Tire Test earlier this year was really important for the chemistry of the team and getting started off on the right foot. I think, though, with the aero changes that have now come about, we weren’t prepared for that, so we didn’t test that aero package that we’re going back to the road course with this weekend. We did get laps, but it wasn’t laps and reps in the proper setting.”

Sheldon Creed and the No. 2 Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Camaro SS at Circuit of The Americas… Sheldon Creed has one career NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Circuit of The Americas, earning a 10th-place finish behind the wheel of the No. 2 Whelen Engineering Chevrolet in 2022. The Alpine, California native started from the sixth position, received contact from a fellow competitor in the final stage, and drove from 28th-place to 10th-place in the last six laps. In addition, Creed has competed in two NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races at the Austin, Texas road course, collecting one pole (2022) and one top-five finish (2021).

Lights 1, 2, 3… If wet weather dampers on-track activities at Circuit of The Americas, NASCAR has the option to allow teams to implement the wet weather package, which includes Whelen red lights. Each vehicle is equipped with Model M4 Series lights for inside the rear window and Model ION T-Series lights for under the rear bumpers.

About Whelen Engineering… 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:

Do you enjoy road course racing? What have your preparations been for the first road course of the season?

“I love road course racing. It’s one of my favorite styles of tracks we go to throughout the season. I have been putting in a lot of time and effort on both the simulator and my iRacing rig to get laps and be in a rhythm by the time we take the track for practice on Friday. Our No. 2 Whelen Engineering team has been bringing fast Chevrolet Camaros to the track each week, but bad luck always seems to strike at some point. I’m hoping we can have a smooth, problem free day and contend for the win on Saturday.” 

Austin Hill and the No. 21 Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet Camaro SS at Circuit of The Americas… Austin Hill has one career NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Circuit of The Americas, posting a second-place finish in 2022 while driving the No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. The Winston, Georgia native also has one NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start at the Austin, Texas facility, earning a ninth-place finish in 2021.

Bennett Texas Fest… McDonough, Georgia-based Bennett Transportation and Logistics is celebrating “Texas Fest” this weekend in support of Hill. BOSS, RoadMasters, and American Eagle logos will adorn the decklid of the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro, representing Bennett Family of Companies’ Texas footprint in the transportation and logistics industry. A quarter of the company’s employees live in the great state of Texas, handling freight with truckers coming in and out of the state every day, and over 100 Texas-based employees, drivers, customers, and freight agents will be on property to cheer on Hill.

Three for Five… With his win at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hill joined elite company – Mark Martin and Kyle Busch – as only the third driver to win three of the first five NASCAR Xfinity Series races. Martin accomplished the fete twice, while Busch completed the achievement three times.

Top of the Standings… After five races, Hill extended his lead in the NASCAR Xfinity Series driver championship point standings. The sophomore driver has a 46-point lead over John Hunter Nemechek and Riley Herbst.

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 14 affiliated operating companies, the Bennett Family of Companies delivers integrated transportation and supply chain management solutions worldwide. Bennett has 4,625 drivers/owner-operators, over 1,000 employees and 600 agents located across the United States. For more information, visit www.bennettig.com.

AUSTIN HILL QUOTE:

How are you feeling heading into the first road course race of the season?

“I feel very confident in our road course package. Our No. 21 Richard Childress Racing team worked on our road course package last year and by the end of the season, we had it in a place where I really felt comfortable and liked the overall feel. I believe we have a good chance at getting another win and going back-to-back in our Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet. We will at least have a shot at it, which is all you can ask for as a driver.”