PREVIEW: Midweek madness on tap for second and third Darlington races

Chad Finchum's new look this week at Darlington
IMAGE: Motorsports Business Management; Jayski's Silly Season Site

Tuesday, May 19, 2020
XFINITY Race 5 of 33
Toyota 200 at Darlington
2019 Last-Place Finisher: Inaugural Event

ENTRY LIST
It’s the XFINITY Series’ turn to make their first start since the suspension of the season in March with their own race at Darlington. It will also be the first race since NASCAR’s temporary allowance of 40-car fields for both the XFINITY and Truck Series races where there is no scheduled qualifying session. Thus, all 39 entrants will start the race.

DRIVER CHANGE: #0-JD Motorsports
DRIVER SWAP: #6-JD Motorsports
Jeffrey Earnhardt to run the #0 with sponsorship from Kids First Community, moving B.J. McLeod from the #0 to the #6, taking the place of David Starr, who isn’t entered. A report by Dustin Albino states Starr and JD have parted ways as the driver had lost his limited sponsorship during the pandemic. Earnhardt had been scheduled to run the #15 back at Atlanta before the postponement, but that car will instead be driven by Colby Howard, who also ran it the last time out at Phoenix. Sany America and Ironpeddlers join the Howard effort as sponsors.

SEASON STORY: #9-JR Motorsports
Noah Gragson won this year’s season opener in Daytona and has finishes of 4th at Las Vegas and 7th at Phoenix, keeping him 6th in the series standings. The only setback came at Fontana, where he wrecked on the backstretch, but managed to finish under power in 26th.

SEASON STORY: #10-Kaulig Racing
A frustrating start to the season in Daytona saw the Kaulig Racing team struggling qualifying, sending home two of their three cars. Ross Chastain’s championship run was saved by a purchased ride with RSS Racing, though an incident on pit road left him 38th. Sunday marked the first Cup race where Chastain has not been entered following his relief duties for Ryan Newman, and he instead resumes his season in this race.

MISSING: #12-Penske Racing
Brad Keselowski is not entered after the team ran at Phoenix, and will instead focus on Sunday’s Cup race following his run from the pole on Sunday.

SPONSOR UPDATE: #13-Motorsports Business Management
A new look this week for Chad Finchum as Great Southern Homes sponsors his #13 Toyota Supra this week, complete with a deep green and white paint scheme.

SEASON STORY: #18-Joe Gibbs Racing
SEASON STORY: #19-Joe Gibbs Racing
SEASON STORY: #20-Joe Gibbs Racing
While JGR’s Cup teams struggled in the first three races following Denny Hamlin’s win in the Daytona 500, their XFINITY program was hitting its stride prior to the pandemic. Harrison Burton took his first series victory at Fontana on February 29, where Riley Herbst had a career day with a close 2nd-place finish. Brandon Jones then pulled off a surprising victory at Phoenix, where he bested Kyle Busch in identical equipment. All three will be ones to watch in Darlington, where Denny Hamlin has dominated in recent years (including his win last September before he was disqualified).

DRIVER CHANGE: #21-Richard Childress Racing
DRIVER SWAP: #93-RSS Racing
Anthony Alfredo returns to the RCR team for the first time since his breakout debut at Fontana in February, where he finished 6th. Myatt Snider, who was originally slated to run the #21 at Atlanta, will instead drive the #93, taking the place of C.J. McLaughlin, the scheduled entrant in Atlanta. Jeff Green ran the #93 when the series last ran at Phoenix, earning a strong 15th.

RETURNING: #26-Sam Hunt Racing
Colin Garrett returns for the first time since the team DNQ’d for the season opener at Daytona, but without crew chief Brian Keselowski, who was released by the team just a few days ago.

RETURNING / DRIVER SWAP: #36-DGM Racing
DRIVER CHANGE: #90-DGM Racing
Back in Atlanta, Mario Gosselin elected to run two cars instead of three, leaving the #36 at the shop. All three cars are instead entered this week. Labbe makes the move from the #36 he ran at Phoenix to the #90 he was scheduled to run in Atlanta, with Atlanta sponsor Larue Snowblowers on the car. The #36 goes to Ronnie Bassett, Jr., who takes the place of brother Dillon Bassett, who ran the #90 in Phoenix.

RETURNING: #54-Joe Gibbs Racing
Back at Atlanta in March, Kyle Busch was not slated to run the XFINITY race as he prepared for the first “Bounty Race” in the Truck Series. But after this week’s return to action, Busch decided to attempt all seven of the NASCAR events held at Darlington and Charlotte. He will again run the Gibbs #54 he ran at Phoenix, which this time features a red-white-and-blue scheme in honor of frontline workers.

SPONSOR UPDATE: #68-Brandonbilt Motorsports
As in years past, Coastal Carolina University is sponsoring Brandon Brown's Chevrolet for a race at Darlington. This time, the scheme will honor the university's graduating class of 2020.

SEASON STORY: #98-Stewart-Haas Racing with Biagi DenBeste
Chase Briscoe won the rain-delayed Las Vegas race on February 23, besting Austin Cindric by nearly three seconds in the run to the checkers. Briscoe’s sponsor this week is HighPoint.com.

TEAM UPDATE: #99-B.J. McLeod Motorsports
Mason Massey, who was slated to run Atlanta after he was swapped out at the last minute for J.J. Yeley in Phoenix, is again entered in the #99 for the series’ return.

CUP INVADERS: #54-Kyle Busch

Wednesday, May 20, 2020
CUP Race 6 of 36
Toyota 500k at Darlington
2019 Last-Place Finisher: Inaugural Event

ENTRY LIST
The Cup Series holds their second race in four days at “The Lady In Black,” where 39 drivers will this time take the green flag. The Top 20 finishers from Sunday’s race will be inverted, putting 20th-place finisher Ryan Preece on the pole and race winner Kevin Harvick in 20th.

MISSING: #7-Tommy Baldwin Racing
Josh Bilicki is the only team from Sunday not entered in Wednesday’s race. Bilicki finished 34th in Sunday’s 400-miler.

DRIVER CHANGE: #27-Rick Ware Racing
Gray Gaulding takes the place of J.J. Yeley, who isn’t entered after he ran on the lead lap for much of Sunday’s race before he finished 28th, 2 laps down. Gaulding’s run in the #27 carries sponsorship from Panini, which backed some of Gaulding’s XFINITY runs for SS-Green Light Racing last year. Gaulding will run the car and sponsor again in next Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600. This will be Gaulding’s 51st Cup start and his first in the series since April 7, 2019 at Bristol, when he finished 36th in Ware’s #51 after engine trouble.

TEAM UPDATE: #77-Spire Motorsports
Ross Chastain had been rumored to be the driver of the #77 this week, bringing on board the same Advent Health sponsor that will back his run with the team next Sunday in the Coca-Cola 600. Chastain himself denied this in a tweet, saying he’d focus instead on his XFINITY Series race with Kaulig Racing. Chastain is still listed as driver of the Chevrolet, sponsored by Bon Secours #TheRealHeroes, though his tweet will likely hand the ride back to Reed Sorenson. Sorenson ran a solid 29th on Sunday.

TEAM UPDATE: #88-Hendrick Motorsports
On May 16, more than two months after he earned his second career victory at Fontana, Alex Bowman received a contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports that will keep him in the #88 through 2021. The news surely lifted Bowman to his strong 2nd-place finish in Sunday’s 400-mile race, where he led 41 laps – third most behind Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski.

LASTCAR STAT OF THE WEEK (May 18, 1997): Bill Hoff finished last for the first time in his NASCAR Busch Series career in the Core States Advantage 200 at Nazareth when his #86 Mawson & Mawson Chevrolet crashed after 30 laps. The finish came in Hoff’s third series start and first of the ’97 season. He would fail to qualify for another five races that season, all in the Tim Durbin-owned #86. Hoff has remained active in NASCAR through just last season, when he made four starts in his #71. Mawson & Mawson backed his most recent effort at Dover on October 4, 2019, when he finished 12th in a field of 14. Fore more on Hoff, check out Benjamin Schneider's excellent write-up on him at this link.

CUP: Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. first since 1993 to fail to complete a lap at Darlington

SCREENSHOT: @SeriesRoblox, from FOX Sports

Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. picked up the 6th last-place finish of his NASCAR Cup Series career in Sunday’s The Real Heroes 400 at the Darlington Raceway when his #47 Kroger / Nature Valley / Healthy Choice Chevrolet crashed out without completing any of the 293 laps.

The finish, which came in Stenhouse’s 261st series start, was his first of the season and first in a Cup Series race since November 3, 2019, seven races ago. In the Cup Series last-place records, it was the 31st for the #47, the 594th from a crash, and the 779th for Chevrolet. Across NASCAR’s top three series, it was the 47th for the #47, the 1,204th from a crash, and the 1,708th for Chevrolet.

The 2020 season has been one of change for the aggressive superspeedway driver from Mississippi. After driving nearly his entire eleven-year NASCAR career for Roush-Fenway Racing, including the last seven as Matt Kenseth’s replacement in the #17 Ford, Stenhouse was released by the team and replaced with Chris Buescher, who claimed the 2015 XFINITY title with the team. It was not until sometime after that Stenhouse landed Buescher’s old ride at JTG-Daugherty Racing, where he also swapped rides with new teammate Ryan Preece.

But with crew chief Brian Pattie joining Stenhouse on his move to the Chevrolet team, the pair authored a surprising qualifying run for the Daytona 500, putting the #47 on the pole for “The Great American Race.” Stenhouse led 24 laps in the race and was still among the leaders when a late spin caused his hood to come loose, leaving him 20th. He recovered to finish 3rd at Las Vegas, lifting him to 5th in points, but then struggled to a 20th at Fontana and 22nd at Phoenix.

During NASCAR’s suspension of the season, Stenhouse then participated in four rounds of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitaitonal Series at Homestead, Texas, Bristol, and Talladega. It was perhaps unsurprising that his best finish of these came at Talladega – site of his first Cup win in 2017 - where he ran 14th.

When the circuit returned to action in Darlington, Stenhouse drew the 23rd starting spot in the 40-car field. The list originally showed just 39 cars, but was soon joined by a returning Tommy Baldwin Racing. TBR hadn’t attempted a race since the 2019 Daytona 500, where Ryan Truex failed to qualify in a #71 Accell Construction Chevrolet. This time, the team returned to Baldwin’s favorite #7 and hired Josh Bilicki to drive. Bilicki brought his Insurance King sponsorship to join primary backer Gravely. The car was towed to the track in a small unmarked white toy hauler.

Bilicki secured the 40th starting spot in the final draw between himself and B.J. McLeod as both teams had yet to start a race. While McLeod had raced for Rick Ware Racing, Darlington would see him field his own car in Cup for the first time, adopting the #78 of his XFINITY Series effort. Christensen Arms, which backed McLeod’s run for Ware in this year’s Daytona 500, returned as sponsor.

On race day, Kyle Busch’s #18 M&M’s “Thank You Heroes” Toyota failed inspection twice, forcing him to surrender the 4th starting spot. Although Busch was the only driver penalized in an event with no practice or qualifying, he never actually started in the 40th spot. Coming to the green flag, his white #18 could be seen accelerating in the high lane of Turn 4, pulling ahead of six other drivers. The final two cars in line were a pair of black cars, likely the original final row of McLeod and Bilicki. This was confirmed at the green flag, where Bilicki resumed his 40th running position. He would not hold it for long.

Coming off the second corner, Stenhouse attempted a pass to the inside of Corey LaJoie’s #32 Dtydene Ford when the two made contact. Stenhouse’s car jumped to the left, then nose nearly head-on into the inside pit wall, just past the gap in the barrier. The wreck brought out the first yellow as Stenhouse limped onto pit road trailing flames from his leaking fluid. The crew instructed him to avoid as many pit boxes as possible to shorten clean-up, and the #47 pulled behind the wall, out of the race under the “Crash Clock” protocol. “We’re going to the garage anway,” said someone on the team. “We’re done, boys.”

On Lap 4, the team told the spotter they were done for the day. It was not until Lap 41 that NASCAR officials confirmed Stenhouse’s DNF, saying “47 out, accident.”

McLeod’s first Cup start as an owner-driver ended after just 13 laps. Heading down the backstretch, the engine sounded off to the spotter, and McLeod noticed the car “wouldn’t pull.” McLeod slowed onto pit road, saying there had been no indication of a temperature issue – the water ran 209 degrees and the oil at 220. He pulled behind the wall on Lap 14, parking next to Stenhouse's hauler, and on Lap 20 someone said “As soon as I confirm, we’re out.” Ultimately, McLeod was listed out on Lap 41 during the same transmission from NASCAR officials on Stenhouse’s exit.

Finishing 38th was Jimmie Johnson, whose spirited run in Stage 1 was undone by bad luck. During the opening laps, he reeled in teammate Alex Bowman for the lead and took the top spot on Lap 81. He was still leading on the final lap of the stage when he caught Chris Buescher’s #17 Fastenal Ford between Turns 1 and 2. As the two came off the corner, Johnson bumped Buescher, who clipped the wall, then bounced back into Johnson. Just like Stenhouse, the #48 headed straight into the inside wall, abruptly ending Johnson’s run.

It wasn’t until later in the race that Johnson was passed by Quin Houff, who lost several laps with a fuel pump issue that required replacement of the entire fuel cell in the #00 Units Chevrolet. Houff ended up completing 137 laps before he fell out in 36th, citing electrical issues. The last car he passed was Garrett Smithley, who was swapped from Rick Ware Racing’s #52 Chevrolet to the #53 Chevrolet, bringing with him his sponsor Trophy Tractor. Engine issues, then a loss of power steering knocked Smithley out of the running ten laps short of Houff.

In front of empty grandstands and crew members wearing masks in accordance with lingering CDC guidelines, several drivers enjoyed strong runs. Tyler Reddick scored his second top-ten finish in just seven series starts, taking a career-best 7th in the #8 Caterpillar “Thank You” Chevrolet. John Hunter Nemechek earned Front Row Motorsports’ best-ever Darlington finish with a 9th, charging from 34th on the grid in the #38 SCAG Power Equipment Ford. It was Nemechek’s first top-ten finish in just eight series starts.

The old guard was also well represented by the weekend’s two big stories. Matt Kenseth, the 2013 Southern 500 winner, returned to the Cup Series for the first time in more than a year, taking over for Kyle Larson in the #42 Credit One Bank Chevrolet. Kenseth finished 10th – his 13th top-ten finish in 26 Cup starts at the track. Ryan Newman was equally strong in his return from serious injuries suffered at Daytona in February. Newman flirted with the Top Ten for much of the afternoon before a late miscue at pit entrance left him 15th in the #6 Oscar Mayer #FrontYardCookout Ford.

The series will return for another run at Darlington this Wednesday, where Stenhouse will roll off last by virtue of his finish in Sunday’s race. He will trail a 39-car field this time as Bilicki’s #7, which managed 34th, is not entered.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This marked the first last-place finish for car #47 in a Cup race at Darlington. The number hasn’t finished last in the series since June 24, 2018, when A.J. Allmendinger lost the engine at the Sonoma Raceway.
*Stenhouse is just the seventh driver in Cup Series history to fail to complete a lap of a Cup race at Darlington:
April 30, 1966 - Sonny Lamphear’s #96 1964 Ford lost an engine
May 13, 1967 – Jabe Thomas’ #25 Star City Body Shop 1967 Ford involved in a multi-car crash
May 11, 1968 – Larry Hess’ 1967 Rambler lost the engine
April 13, 1980 – Neil Bonnett’s #21 Purolator Mercury involved in a multi-car crash
April 10, 1983 – Terry Labonte’s #44 Budweiser Chevrolet involved in a multi-car crash
September 5, 1993 – Bob Schacht’s #85 Burger King Ford did not start

THE BOTTOM FIVE
40) #47-Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. / 0 laps / crash
39) #78-B.J. McLeod / 13 laps / engine
38) #48-Jimmie Johnson / 89 laps / crash / led 9 laps
37) #53-Garrett Smithley / 127 laps / power steering
36) #00-Quin Houff / 137 laps / electrical

2020 LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Motorsports Business Management (2)
2nd) Hendrick Motorsports, JTG-Daugherty Racing, Leavine Family Racing (1)

2020 LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Toyota (3)
2nd) Chevrolet (2)

2020 LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP

PREVIEW: It's finally time to get back to business at Darlington

Josh Bilicki brings Tommy Baldwin Racing back to the Cup Series this Sunday.
SCREENSHOT: @joshbilicki

Sunday, May 17, 2020
CUP Race 5 of 36
The Real Heroes 400 at Darlington
2019 Last-Place Finisher: Inaugural Event

ENTRY LIST
The Cup Series returns to action for the first time in more than two months following the unprecedented international response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the competitors prepare to run more than one Cup race at Darlington for the first time since 2004 –though with social distancing enforced and no fans in attendance – let’s take a look not only at the changes to the 40-car entry list, but also review the storylines from the first four races of 2020, and the hiatus that followed.

SEASON STORY / DRIVER CHANGE: #6-Roush-Fenway Racing
SEASON STORY: #11-Joe Gibbs Racing
Denny Hamlin won the rain-delayed Daytona 500 in February, edging Ryan Blaney for the victory. In doing so, Hamlin became just the fourth driver to win the 500 in consecutive years and the first since Sterling Marlin (1994-1995). The photo finish resulted from a terrifying crash entering the tri-oval where Blaney made contact with leader Ryan Newman, sending him into the outside wall and into the path of Corey LaJoie. The resulting impact left Newman with a serious concussion, though he was released from the hospital later that week. As Newman recovered, Ross Chastain drove in his place for the next three races and was still slated to run at Atlanta. Chastain finished no better than 17th in Newman’s #6. Newman has been cleared to race and will return to competition this Sunday.

RETURNING: #7-Tommy Baldwin Racing
On May 11 came news that Tommy Baldwin Racing would return to the Cup Series for the first time since they came up just short of making the 2019 Daytona 500 with Ryan Truex in the #71. The team will again return to their more familiar #7 on their Chevrolet with Josh Bilicki as the driver. Bilicki eyes his first start of the 2020 season – his most recent start was the 2019 finale at Homestead for Rick Ware Racing, when he finished 36th in the #52. Gravely is the primary sponsor with Bilicki’s frequent backer Insurance King as associate.

SEASON STORY: #12-Penske Racing
SEASON STORY: #88-Hendrick Motorsports
Alex Bowman scored the second victory of his Cup Series career on March 1 at Fontana, dominating much of the race and besting Ryan Blaney, who blew a tire in the final laps. Both Bowman and Blaney were charging through the field in Las Vegas and were in position to take the victory before a late-race caution ultimately handed the win to Logano. Blaney is still eyeing his first victory of the season after nearly claiming the first three, then nearly finishing last in Phoenix.

TEAM MERGER: #15, #27-Premium Motorsports
TEAM MERGER: #51, #52, #53, #54-Rick Ware Racing
TEAM MERGER: #77-Spire Motorsports
The rumored merger of Rick Ware Racing with Premium Motorsports (and Premium’s sister team Spire Motorsports) was reportedly completed during the hiatus. Photos showed cars from Ware’s team in the Premium shop alongside the #15 driven by rookie Brennan Poole and the #77 which was run by Reed Sorenson in the three races following Daytona. Both Poole’s #15 and Sorenson’s #77 were entered for Sunday's race along with three of the original four Ware cars – Joey Gase in the #51 Agri Supply Ford (the same Bobby Allison throwback he ran in the Talladega iRacing event as car #53), Garrett Smithley in the #52 Trophy Tractor Chevrolet, and J.J. Yeley in the #53 Jacob Construction Ford. That changed late Wednesday with the #52 withdrawn and replaced by the former Premium #27. Yeley and the Trophy Tractor sponsorship went to the #27, and Smithley was moved from the withdrawn #52 to the #53. Gray Gaulding will then run the #27 with returning sponsorship from Panini in both the Wednesday Darlington race and the Coca-Cola 600. The team reported there have been no Charter swaps among its teams - the #27 remains an "open" entry and was run at the sponsor's request.

SEASON STORY: #22-Penske Racing
Joey Logano won the season’s most recent race at Phoenix Raceway on March 8, holding off Kevin Harvick in the final laps. He remains the only repeat winner in the four races run so far. The other came at Las Vegas, where he took the checkered flag after a late-race restart triggered a pileup on the frontstretch.

SEASON STORY: #24-Hendrick Motorsports
While he scored his first Cup Series last-place finish in the Daytona 500 after an early crash, William Byron scored the most victories in the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series, taking the checkers in three races – Bristol, Richmond, and Dover. Byron now looks to earn his first Cup Series victory, perhaps at the track where he won the pole last September driving the green-and-yellow “Days of Thunder” throwback.

SEASON STORY / DRIVER CHANGE: #42-Chip Ganassi Racing
Kyle Larson was quietly off to one of the strongest starts of his Cup Series career in 2020. Despite his struggles on the superspeedways, he finished 10th in the Daytona 500, then ran 9th in Las Vegas. At Fontana, he recovered from early contact that put him in the wall to take 21st at the checkered flag, then ran 4th at Phoenix, lifting him to 7th in the series standings. But during a livestreamed sim race on Easter Sunday, Larson uttered a racial slur, costing him his ride with Ganassi. While Larson has completed his sensitivity training, he is not entered in Sunday’s race. Matt Kenseth was tabbed as his replacement, and will make his first start in more than a year at Darlington.

SEASON STORY: #47-JTG-Daugherty Racing
Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and his Roush-Fenway Racing crew chief Brian Pattie enjoyed a great start to the season in Daytona, where Stenhouse won the pole and led 24 laps. He then finished 3rd at Las Vegas, keeping him firmly in the Top 20 in points. Stenhouse has since led at least six laps in three of the four races this season, all but the most recent round at Phoenix, where he ran a season-worst 22nd.

SEASON STORY: #66-Motorsports Business Management
Prior to the season’s suspension, Timmy Hill was enjoying some well-deserved attention from the media. Hill qualified for his first-ever Daytona 500 in February and managed to finish 3rd in the XFINITY race that weekend. While mechanical issues gave Hill the early lead in the LASTCAR Cup Series Championship, he then excelled in the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series, taking the overall lead on points and a thrilling win in Texas. On May 10 came news that RoofClaim.com, his new sponsor for 2020, decided to invest more in MBM’s Cup and XFINITY programs to get them up to speed.

NEW TEAM: #78-B.J. McLeod Motorsports
For the first time, B.J. McLeod will field his own Cup Series car and drive it in the team’s debut, putting Todd Parrott atop the pit box. McLeod, who has driven for Rick Ware Racing in all but one of his previous 42 Cup starts, will field the same #78 number as his primary team in the XFINITY Series, bringing the #78 back to Cup for the first time since Furniture Row Racing closed following the 2018 Homestead finale. No sponsor is yet listed, but along with the late addition of Tommy Baldwin Racing brings the field to a full 40 cars for the first time since the Daytona 500. McLeod will look for a turnaround after he finished last in last year's Southern 500.

SEASON STORY: #96-Gaunt Brothers Racing
It’s been a troubling start for Daniel Suarez, his first with single-car open team the Gaunt Brothers. Suarez failed to qualify for the Daytona 500 after a crash in his Duel, then suffered a mechanical failure coming to the line at Las Vegas, where he returned to finish 30th. He did show measured improvement in the following two races, running a quiet 28th at Fontana despite several pit stops, then earning his first lead-lap finish of the year at Phoenix where he ran 21st. The team has just this week hired veteran Nick Ollila as technical director, which the group hopes will improve their performance.

LASTCAR STAT OF THE WEEK
Today in LASTCAR History (May 14, 1978): Coo Coo Marlin picked up the 6th last-place finish of his NASCAR Winston Cup Series career in the Winston 500 at Talladega, when the engine failed on his #14 Cunningham-Kelley Chevrolet after 4 laps. Marlin would share his ride with son Sterling for a combined 11 races in 1978, but the pair failed to finish seven races, five due to engine failures.

FEATURE: Darwin "JR" Peters, Jr. a throwback to NASCAR's mechanics-turned-racers

PHOTO: Big Monte Media

The Truck Series has long been a haven for underdog drivers and teams, giving them the opportunity to compete in national competition. This is particularly true at the Eldora Dirt Derby, which in its inaugural running in 2013 saw veteran Norm Benning turn heads with a door-slamming battle for the final transfer position in the Last Chance Qualifier.

Another dirt tracker turned heads at Eldora just last year. Darwin Peters, Jr., who goes by “JR Peters,” is a mechanic from Olean, New York who was born November 7, 1964. He works at his own garage, Jr Peters Roadside Auto, and also drives school buses for the Allegany-Limestone School District. Now 56, Peters has spent nearly four decades of his life in the automotive industry.

A lifelong NASCAR fan, Peters has also worked hard to advance his racing career. He fielded his own street stock in 1995, decorating it similar to Terry Labonte’s iconic Kellogg’s Corn Flakes Chevrolet. In ten years on the ovals, he won several races and championships, then moved to late models, first in the Bicknell Racing Products Can Am Late Model Series, the FasTrak Late Model Series, and the Rush Dirt Late Model Series.

Peters got his break in 2012, when a mutual friend introduced him to Mike Harmon. Working for an underdog in the sport allowed him to work various roles for Mike Harmon Racing (MHR), including jack man, tire changer, and gas man. Though he could only work a few XFINITY and Truck Series races each year, he picked up valuable skills while also turning his mechanical know-how toward helping Harmon’s underfunded effort. In 2018, when Peters moved to Carl Long’s team Motorsports Business Management (MBM), Peters earned his NASCAR license to compete in the Gander RV & Outdoors Series.

Peters and his #5 street stock celebrating a win at Bradford Speedway.
PHOTO: Big Monte Media

In 2019, Peters sold his late model to help fund a ride in Mike Harmon’s truck for the 2019 race at Eldora. The truck was purchased by former MHR crewman Alan Collins, and the team leased the #74 from Lou Goss, who made his own series debut earlier that year at Gateway. Harmon helped support the team’s efforts at Eldora, where the black-and-white #74 carried several logos. Peters’ own garage occupied the hood and TV panel, with the sides sponsored by Angelo’s Southern Tier Spray Foam, Peters Graphics & Design, Big Monte Media, Barkz Play / Stay / Spa, Bucktooth's Asphalt Sealcoating & Striping, and Auto Plus Auto Parts. Peters' truck also carried the names of twelve individual supporters and a special message in memory of fallen racer John Morgan Rogers.

Peters lost a lap in his heat race, but recovered in the Last Chance Qualifier to finish 5th of seven trucks, securing him 30th on the grid for the main event. In a race slowed by 12 cautions, but with only last-place Austin Hill out of the race, Peters managed to avoid much of the night’s chaos and earn a strong 17th-place finish. He also came home on the lead lap, having earned two of the final four Lucky Dogs. It was a tremendous accomplishment, but Peters couldn’t bask in it for long. He drove through the night to reach Watkins Glen by morning, back at work on MBM’s XFINITY Series cars.

Peters offered his thanks to all who helped him on his path, “especially [my] loving wife, Sandy, daughters Alexis and Lily, [my] parents, all [my] friends and supporters, Allegany-Limestone School District, Big Monte Media, Barkz Play / Stay / Spa, Bucktooth's Asphalt Sealcoating & Striping, Auto Plus Auto Parts, and all those who helped in making [my] NASCAR dream a reality.”

Peters remains hard at work in 2020, both in his garage, at the school, and with MBM. As of this writing, plans for future NASCAR starts are still in the works. For more on Jr Peters Roadside Auto, check out his website here.

Special thanks to Big Monte Media for providing the write-up and photos used in this article.

iRACING: Scoring issue and mystery disqualification leave Ty Dillon last in North Wilkesboro

SCREENSHOT: @GermainRacing, iRacing

Ty Dillon finished last in Saturday’s seventh round of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational, the North Wilkesboro 160 at the North Wilkesboro Speedway, when his #13 GEICO Chevrolet was disqualified after he completed 84 of 160 laps.

The 2020 season has marked Dillon’s fourth consecutive season driving for Germain Racing in the Cup Series. It comes after the 28-year-old’s best season to date, when he scored his first Top Five with a 4th in the July race at Daytona and scored a pair of stage wins – one each at Bristol and Talladega. He started the year with a crash in the Daytona 500, then a season-best 10th in Las Vegas before finishes of 26th and 15th in the following two rounds, leaving him 23rd in the series standings.

During the Pro Invitational Series, Dillon has been sure to represent his sponsor, GEICO, taping the company’s slogans to his walls and displaying decorative geckos around his rig. The finishes, however, have not been stellar. While he only failed to finish one race – a crash last week in Dover – he’d run no better than 15th, which came at Richmond. His best overall performance was at Talladega, where he qualified 6th and led eight laps, only to slip to 23rd in the final laps.

Dillon would not run a throwback scheme for the much-anticipated North Wilkesboro race, but his family has deep roots with the track. His grandfather Richard Childress made 19 starts at the track from 1972 through 1981, earning a best of 6th in 1977. He would then score five wins at the track as an owner with Dale Earnhardt, the first coming in 1986 and last in 1995.

Dillon qualified 18th in the 29-car field, seven spots behind his brother Austin in 11th.

Taking last on the grid was Clint Bowyer, back from a one-week hiatus in his #14 Rush Truck Centers Ford. Reportedly, Bowyer “didn’t quite make it around the track” during his qualifying lap, putting him in the rear. While it was reported that Christopher Bell dropped to the rear prior to the start due to his strong finish last week in Dover, FOX Sports’ footage showed Bowyer still in last coming to the green, drawing alongside Michael McDowell in the #34 Love’s Travel Stops Ford.

Scoring errors are not unusual to the real North Wilkesboro Speedway. Most notorious of these occurred during the running of the First Union 400 thirty years ago. A caution during pit stops caused confusion, ultimately putting Brett Bodine ahead of Darrell Waltrip after a lengthy delay. Bodine took the win, the only one of his Cup career. Saturday proved no different. While 29 cars started the race, the scoring pylon only showed 28 spots. This made it sadly impossible to track the 29th spot during the race, and I mistakenly credited the 28th-place runner as last during my live tweets.

By Lap 4, Joey Gase had slipped to the 28th spot, 5.766 seconds back of the lead. His #53 Ford was decorated like team owner Rick Ware’s Otter Pops Pontiac that he raced in his Cup debut at Watkins Glen in 1990. Denny Hamlin took the spot on Lap 14 following his involvement in an accident on the backstretch, then passed Gase’s teammate J.J. Yeley, driving a Ken Schrader throwback on his #52 Ford. Gase returned to 28th on Lap 20, then was shown without an interval for at least five circuits. McDowell was then involved in an accident, dropping him to 28th, two laps down.

McDowell held 28th until around Lap 51, when Chris Buescher fell two laps down in the #17 Fastenal Ford. Buescher’s car was shown later in the race with much of the front clip missing, and drew another caution on Lap 54. Buescher lost a third lap in the process, but remained on track in the next-to-last positon.

Ty Dillon entered the last-place picture with 72 laps to go, when his #13 was shown three laps down, putting him on the same lap as Buescher. Germain Racing’s PR indicated Dillon had also suffered rear end damage on Lap 74. He was 10 laps down with 65 to go, indicating he was likely out of the race. Scoring then surprisingly showed Erik Jones climb to 28th with 63 to go, his #20 a full 11 laps down. Given the missing 29th spot on scoring, this likely indicates Jones was running last for the run prior to Dillon’s disqualification. Jones gained one of his laps back and finished 22nd, 10 laps down.

McDowell took 28th, a full 68 laps back of the leader. I first credited McDowell with the last-place finish before the mistake was discovered in the final results. In the end, Dillon had edged McDowell for the spot by just eight laps.

Ryan Preece suffered a disappointing 27th-place finish after his #37 Purina Chevrolet started outside-pole and led 32 of the first 99 laps. Preece’s car was later shown slowing on the frontstretch before he disconnected. Aric Almirola took 26th in a special Mother’s Day version of his #10 Smithfield Ford. The pastel-colored paint scheme was designed by his wife Janice. Rounding out the Bottom Five was Corey LaJoie, whose throwback #32 Drydene Ford fell out after the brake pedal came loose from his sim rig.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*Car #13 has never finished last in a Cup Series race at North Wilkesboro, a track where Derrike Cope became the final last-place finisher in September 1996.
*While Dillon’s grandfather Richard Childress never finished last at North Wilkesboro, Richard’s younger brother Ronnie Childress did – and did so in his only Cup start. On April 21, 1974, Ronnie’s #75 Childress Racing 1972 Chevrolet had ignition problems after 43 laps, leaving him last in the 30-car field. Richard finished 22nd, out with a rear end issue.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
29) #13-Ty Dillon / 84 laps / disqualified
28) #34-Michael McDowell / 92 laps / disconnected
27) #37-Ryan Preece / 99 laps / disconnected / led 32 laps
26) #10-Aric Almirola / 103 laps / disconnected
25) #32-Corey LaJoie / 133 laps / brake pedal