No. 18 TMC Toyota GR Supra News and Notes:
- SMITH AT KANSAS: Sammy Smith will make his second start at Kansas Speedway this weekend after a top-10 finish last year.
- DARLINGTON RECAP: Smith qualified 11th last weekend at Darlington Raceway. The No. 18 started from the rear due to an incident during qualifying. Smith raced into the top-10 by lap 10, but spun out on lap 12. He went a lap down, but received the free pass during the lap 56 caution. Smith struggled with handling due to the damage on the car and finished the race in 17th.
- ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Smith is eligible to compete for the 2023 NXS Sunoco Rookie of the Year (ROTY). The other drivers competing for the title are Chandler Smith, Parker Retzlaff, and Blaine Perkins.
- ARCA EAST CHAMPION x2: Smith defended his 2021 ARCA Menards Series East (AMSE) Championship in 2022 on the strength of five wins and a top-five finish in all of the AMSE races. He also won four ARCA Menards Series races and one ARCA Menards Series West race in 2022.
- ON THE PITBOX: Crew Chief Jeff Meendering will head up the No. 18 team during the 2023 season. He has visited Victory Lane eight times as a NXS crew chief, most recently with Smith at Phoenix in March 2023. His teams have collected 57 top-five finishes, 120 top-10 finishes, and 11 pole positions under his leadership.
- JGR AT KANSAS: Joe Gibbs Racing owns 11 Xfinity Series wins at Kansas Speedway. In 61 combined starts at the track, the organization has tallied 20 top-five finishes, 35 top-10s, six pole awards, and 1,286 laps led. The list of drivers who have taken JGR to victory lane at Kansas includes Christopher Bell, Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Brandon Jones, Joey Logano, and Matt Kenseth.
- FOLLOW ALONG: Follow along for updates and a behind-the-scenes look at Smith’s 2023 NXS Seasons.
Twitter: @SammySmithSS I Facebook: Sammy Smith Racing I Instagram: @sammysmithss_
- RACE INFO: The NXS Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas is scheduled for 3:00 PM EST on Saturday, September 9. The race will be broadcasted on NBC, MRN, Sirius XM and available to stream on the NBC Sports app.
From the Driver’s Seat:
Sammy Smith: “This weekend would be the perfect time to turn the corner from the last month. This is the last race of the regular season so we’re looking for some momentum going into the Playoffs next week. We’re aiming to put together a solid race and get a good finish in our No. 18 TMC Toyota GR Supra.”
JGR PR
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