Kaz Grala has momentum on his side going into Iowa

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While most 16-year-olds are making plans for summer vacations, Kaz Grala is putting a wrap on another school year and strapping into his 610 horsepower NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Toyota Camry to try and tame “The Fastest Short Track on the Planet” on May 16.


 

Grala will bring the familiar blue and white No. 3 Kiklos Toyota Camry to the Casey’s General Store 150 at Iowa Speedway with a sharp focus on victory, and the continuation of a championship charge in his first season with Ben Kennedy Racing. 

He has advanced in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East points each event this season and stands fifth, only 24 points behind the championship lead. With 11 events remaining in the season, crew chief Mike Fritts is far from pushing the panic button.

 

“We’ve got a great driver in Kaz,” said Fritts. “We had some misfortune at New Smyrna to start the season, but since then, he’s been up front and challenging for wins. We have plenty of time to gain points and compete for the championship and it starts with getting solid runs each week. As long as we do our job, Kaz will do his and that’s all it takes.”

 

In the last NASCAR K&N Pro Series East event at Bristol Motor Speedway, Grala was the hard charger of the race, advancing eight positions en route to a fourth-place finish. Carrying the momentum of a strong Bristol showing, Grala is primed to return to one of his favorite tracks on the schedule. 

 

Last August, Grala finished eighth in his second career start on the fast and bumpy .875-mile circuit by finding the high-groove late in the race, passing cars and surviving a wild late race restart. With additional experience and understanding of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series cars under his belt, along with veteran crew chief Mike Fritts, the Boston native is in the best position of his young career to score a victory in one of the season’s biggest events. 

 

“We had a great run in Bristol,” said Grala. “Fritts gave me a car that was comfortable to drive and still fast enough to pass and that’s really all you can ask for at Bristol. Now we transition to a track where you need speed and drivability in your car.Both are heavily dictated by how well you can get your car to go through the bumps, which make Iowa such a unique track.”

 

“When you look at the car that Ben Kennedy Racing had at Iowa last August, it was fast at the top, went through the bumps well and was able to pass extremely well. I’m interested to see if the top-line will be the fast line again or if we gravitate back to the more traditional lower-line. Fortunately, I’ve got the best crew chief in the business and he and the guys will be on top of all the changes that we need to go for the win.”

 

At Bristol, Grala scored his twelfth career top-10 finish in only his nineteenth career start. He’ll look to add number 13 in Iowa as he goes for the win in the first of two K&N Pro Series East-West combination events in Newton this season.

Ben Kennedy Racing PR

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