Archive for January, 2022

SS GREENLIGHT RACING HAS BIG PLANS FOR 2022

Posted on: January 10th, 2022
Location: post

MOORESVILLE, NC – January 7, 2022: SS GreenLight Racing (SSGLR) announced today major changes for the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season. Among the changes for the Mooresville, N.C.-based team, including a manufacturer change, a new technical alliance and additional drivers within the team’s footprint.

The team will switch from Chevrolet to Ford which includes a technical alliance with Stewart Haas Racing (SHR) and Ford Motor Company’s Ford Performance program. Ford Performance is the high-performance division of the Ford Motor Company and the multinational name used for its motorsport and racing activity.

SHR will supply the organization with race cars while Roush Yates Engines will provide the legendary Ford horsepower.

In addition to providing race cars to SSGLR, SHR will also provide technical support for the entire 33-race season.

The new partnership was orchestrated by fgrACCEL, a full-service sports marketing and management agency.

“We are thrilled to be part of this new relationship with SS GreenLight Racing,” offered Stewart-Haas Racing executive Joe Custer. “The team is very eager to raise their competitiveness to the next level and with this technical arrangement, they are going to be in a great position to accomplish all of their goals and more next season, as well as position themselves for future growth.”

With their agreement with Stewart-Haas Racing, nine-time Xfinity Series winner Cole Custer will also join SS GreenLight Racing for a minimum of four Xfinity events over the course of the 2022 season. 11-time NASCAR Xfinity Series winner Chase Briscoe will also take the wheel for one race in 2022.

“The addition of Cole and Chase driving a limited schedule for SS GreenLight Racing will also be an added benefit to help evaluate the team’s transition,” added Joe Custer. The team’s technical support with SHR should allow SS GreenLight Racing the opportunity to showcase a performance peak in the series on a consistent basis.”

A fixture in the NASCAR Xfinity Series since 1995 and a full-time commitment to the series since 2017, team owner Bobby Dotter is elated about the next chapter for his organization.

“I am excited to be joining the Ford Performance group this season,” he said. “I know they have a proven winning product, and I am looking forward to working with them and the other Ford teams.

“I have had a great working relationship with Stewart-Haas Racing for a number of years on other various racing projects, so it’s great to see this relationship come full circle of this magnitude. Having that prior relationship with SHR, I have seen what Ford does for its team and having an alliance with them should speed up our learning curve and result in better on track performances next season.”

The team also confirmed that Joe Graf Jr. will return to the team next season to pilot one of the two full-time entries.

“I am so stoked for the new opportunities in 2022,” said Graf Jr. who joined the Bobby Dotter-owned team at the beginning of the 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series season. “Our new relationship with Stewart-Haas Racing and Ford will allow us to continue to grow and improve as a team and hopefully give us the opportunity to showcase our ability in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at our highest level yet.

“This new relationship with Stewart-Haas Racing is more than about a technical alliance, it’s about being a part of a new family and a team that has enjoyed monstrous success in the Xfinity Series for the past several seasons.

“Joe Williams will return as my crew chief next season, and I know we both feel like this new opportunity not only has the potential to bring SS GreenLight Racing to new heights, but hopefully elevate this team to a highly competitive perennial organization.”

Added Dotter, “This is a huge move for us, but it would not have been possible without fgrACCEL, Joe Graf Jr., Stewart-Haas Racing and our marketing partners. Joe has found a home at SS GreenLight Racing and with his team already having success in landing partnerships for next season, the opportunity to strengthen not only his team but the entire SS GreenLight Racing foundation is pinnacle for our future.

“We have a lot of work to do in the coming weeks and months ahead, but I believe with Joe’s continued focus, determination and outlook, he’s ready to make a giant step forward and we want to give him all the right equipment for his third year with SS GreenLight Racing.”

Additional details on Joe Graf Jr.’s 2022 program, including an expanded partnership lineup, will be announced at a later date.

Further announcements on SS GreenLight Racing’s second full-time team are forthcoming.

For more on Joe Graf Jr. visit JoeGrafRacing.com, like him on Facebook (Joe Graf Jr.), follow him on TikTok (@JoeGrafJr), (Twitter (@JoeGrafJr) and Instagram (@joegrafjr).

For more on SS GreenLight Racing, please like them on Facebook (SS GreenLight Racing) and follow them on Twitter (@SSGLR0717) and visit their website at SSGreenLight.com.

About SS Green Light Racing:

As one of the most tenured teams in all of NASCAR, SS GreenLight Racing led by team owner and former driver Bobby Dotter has been a mainstay in the sport fielding entries in either the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series or the Xfinity Series competition since 2001.

SS GreenLight Racing will continue with a two-car program in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2022.

CONTACT: pr@joegrafracing.com.

2022 RACE SCHEDULE IS HERE!

Posted on: January 11th, 2022
Location: post

Click here to download.

ONE-OF-A-KIND 1963 FORD F-100 “UNO”

Posted on: January 11th, 2022
Location: post

From Barrett-Jackson: Nicknamed “Uno,” this 1963 Ford F-100 unibody custom pickup has spent the last five years being built. Multiple big-name builders and shops have helped mold this vision into a reality. The final touches were completed by Charles “Sleeves” Cimino, formerly of Gas Monkey Garage and the “Fast and Loud” television series, along with paint and interior by Ceballos Customs. At the heart of this custom pickup is the monstrous power plant, courtesy of Roush Yates. This Holley Sniper fuel-injected 547ci big-block V8 was custom-built by Roush Yates and runs on a reliable mild tune putting 515hp to the rear wheels with 645 ft/lbs of torque. The big-block V8 is backed by a TCI 6-speed automatic transmission sending drive through a custom carbon-fiber drive shaft and on to a posi-traction Strange rear end with 3.89 gears. The pickup features custom headers and a 3-inch custom exhaust system with MagnaFlow mufflers that have been covered in Cerakote to ensure years of durability. An Aeromotive fuel pump to keeps this beast fed properly while it breathes through a 100-pound 4-injector throttle body. The engine itself is dressed in many powder-coated parts, is AN fitting-equipped and is also fitted with a Billet Specialties Tru Trac front runner drive belt system. Billet Specialties also supplied the 20- and 22-inch wheels and the custom steering wheel. Wrapping the wheels are 275/30/20 and 335/25/22 Vredestein tires. A Hydro-Boost-powered Wilwood brake package (6-piston front and 4-piston rear) and stainless brake lines provide plenty of stopping power. “Uno” sits on a custom-built, modified chassis that has been completely reinforced and built for road or track. A Roadster Shop front crossmember and RideTech coilovers at all four corners handle the stance and ride. The body was stripped to bare metal, massaged, and smoothed for an extremely clean and straight finish. The gaps are phenomenally fitted and the gloss white paint is accented by satin and gloss black trim. The bed is finished in custom-made aluminum slats airbrushed to look like ebony wood but are much lighter and more durable. The interior was custom finished by Ceballos Customs and features hand-molded Moore & Giles black leather and Alcantara, as well as red diamond stitching accents. A high-end Morel sound system was installed – including speakers, subwoofer and amplifier – that was molded into the interior and sounds amazing. The Satin Black dash features an Ididit steering column, Restomod Air conditioning with heat control panel and custom vents, Dakota Digital gauges, power window switches and push-button start. “Uno” is a one-of-a-kind build completed in November 2021 and will hold up to the highest standards.

For more information about this one-of-a-kind custom pickup, click here. 

Photo courtesy of Barrett-Jackson.

Rheem Reunites with Harvick in 2022

Posted on: January 11th, 2022
Location: post

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (Jan. 11, 2022) – As Kevin Harvick embarks on his 22nd year in the NASCAR Cup Series, a familiar brand rejoins the driver of the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) in 2022.

Rheem, America’s No. 1 water heating brand and major air conditioning and heating manufacturer, is commemorating its 15th anniversary in racing, and as a part of the celebration, Rheem will partner with Harvick and the No. 4 team for three NASCAR Cup Series races. Harvick will drive the No. 4 Rheem Ford Mustang March 6 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, May 8 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway and Sept. 11 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City.

The pairing reunites Rheem with Harvick, a relationship that began in 2007 when Harvick won the Daytona 500 in dramatic fashion, beating NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin for the victory by .02 of a second in a frantic green-white-checkered finish. It led to Rheem serving as a primary partner for Harvick’s NASCAR Xfinity Series team, Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), in 2008.

“Kevin Harvick helped launch Rheem Racing and through KHI, Kevin played a prominent role in Rheem realizing value in the sport and progressively moving up to the NASCAR Cup Series,” said Ed Raniszeski, executive director, Rheem motorsports. “Kevin’s long history with Rheem and his great rapport with Rheem customers makes this a very welcome homecoming. NASCAR has been an increasingly valuable platform for Rheem and we hope this reunion serves as our way of thanking racing fans for supporting Rheem and all sponsors who showcase their brands and believe in the power and future of NASCAR.”

Rheem’s debut with KHI came on May 2, 2008 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway where Harvick finished second in the Lipton Tea 250. Harvick delivered Rheem its first victory as a primary sponsor on Feb. 27, 2010 when he won the Sam’s Town 300 at Las Vegas. Rheem aligned as a primary partner with Harvick in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2011 and stayed with him through the 2013 season before Harvick joined SHR in 2014.

“It’s been 15 years since we first started working with Rheem and it’s great to be back with them,” Harvick said. “The NASCAR fan is their customer, and we’ve worked really hard to understand that relationship to ensure Rheem gets a good return on its investment. This year kind of throws it back to how it all began with Rheem being a primary sponsor on one of my racecars. I’m proud to carry their colors again in 2022.”

Harvick is the 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion and he is also a two-time Xfinity Series champion (2001 and 2006). He has 119 points-paying victories across NASCAR’s top-three national touring series – Cup (58 wins), Xfinity (47 wins) and Camping World Truck (14 wins).

Harvick’s season kicks off with the non-points Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum Feb. 5-6 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the official start of the 2022 campaign with the 64th annual Daytona 500 Feb. 20 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

About Rheem:
Founded in 1925, Rheem® innovates new ways to deliver precise temperatures while saving energy, water and supporting a more sustainable future. Rheem is America’s No. 1 water heating brand with products available in more than 80 countries. Paloma Co., Ltd.® of Nagoya, Japan, acquired the iconic Rheem brand in 1988. Today the company’s portfolio of premium brands include Rheem®, Raypak®, Ruud®, Eemax®, Richmond®, Splendid®, Solahart® and EverHot™ as well as commercial refrigeration brands Russell®, Witt®, ColdZone® and Kramer®, which are part of the Heat Transfer Products Group (HTPG®) division and, most recently, Friedrich, an industry leader in high-end air conditioning solutions.

About Stewart-Haas Racing:
Stewart-Haas Racing is the title-winning NASCAR team co-owned by three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation – the largest CNC machine tool builder in North America. The Kannapolis, North Carolina-based organization has won two NASCAR Cup Series titles, one NASCAR Xfinity Series championship and more than 90 NASCAR races, including such crown-jewel events as the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and Southern 500. For more information, please visit us online at StewartHaasRacing.com and on social at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn.

ALMIROLA TO RETIRE AT END OF 2022 SEASON

Posted on: January 11th, 2022
Location: post

Smithfield Foods To Continue as Anchor Partner for No. 10 Team

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (Jan. 10, 2022) – The 2022 season will be Aric Almirola’s 15th and final year as a NASCAR Cup Series driver. The 37-year-old racer will retire after the season finale Nov. 6 at Phoenix Raceway.

Longtime sponsor Smithfield Foods will continue as an anchor partner of Almirola and the No. 10 team of Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), with 2022 marking the brand’s 11th year with Almirola and its fifth with SHR.

“I truly enjoy driving racecars and I’m excited to race my heart out in 2022 for Smithfield and Stewart-Haas Racing,” said Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang. “But to be the best in this business, you’ve got to be selfish, and for the last 37 years my life has always revolved around me and what I needed to do.

“I want to be present. I want to be the best husband and father, and that to me means more than being a racecar driver. So, it’s one more year where I’m all in on racing, where we’ll do whatever it takes to compete at the highest level. But when the season is over, I’ll be ready to wave goodbye. I’ve loved every minute of it, but it’s time for the next chapter of my life.”

Almirola made his NASCAR Cup Series debut on March 11, 2007 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, three days before his 23rd birthday. He teamed up with Smithfield in 2012 while at Richard Petty Motorsports for his first full year in Cup. The Smithfield/Almirola partnership is now one of the most tenured in NASCAR, and since the duo joined SHR in 2018, Almirola has represented Smithfield in the NASCAR Playoffs every year and scored two wins – Oct. 14, 2018 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway and July 18, 2021 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon.

“It’s been an absolute pleasure to have Aric as part of our Smithfield Family for more than a decade now,” said Shane Smith, president and CEO, Smithfield Foods. “In addition to being an incredibly talented racer and devoted family man, Aric embodies Smithfield’s values and has embraced our commitment to do good for our customers, employees and communities. He will always be family. We wish him all the best in his next chapter and look forward to another great year with him and Stewart-Haas Racing.”

Almirola’s decision to make the 2022 season his last was pragmatic. The Tampa, Florida-native is a husband and father of two, and as he and his wife, Janice, looked at life beyond racetracks on Sundays, Almirola determined that stepping back from racing would allow him to take new steps with his children as they pursue dreams of their own.

“Janice and I have spent many nights talking about it and the questions are the same as anyone else would have when you’re going to stop doing something. Can I afford it? The answer I kept coming up with is that I can’t afford not to. Will I regret it? I think I’ll regret it if I don’t,” Almirola said.

“At the end of this season, we’re going to have a 10-year-old in Alex and a nine-year-old in Abby, and I’m going to have a short window with them while they still think Dad is cool. I want to be there for them and to be a part of the things they’re interested in. Before we know it, they’re going to have car keys and they’re going to be running off with their friends, doing the same things I did when I was 16 or 17.”

Tony Stewart, co-owner of SHR with Haas Automation founder Gene Haas, first met Almirola in 2004 when they were teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing. Stewart was already a NASCAR Cup Series champion with the first of his three titles in hand (2002, 2005 and 2011) while Almirola was just beginning his NASCAR career after being selected as one of the first two drivers for Gibbs’ diversity program.

“I’ve watched Aric develop into a really good racecar driver and it was a proud moment when we were able to bring him to Stewart-Haas Racing,” Stewart said. “He’s really delivered for our race team and for Smithfield, always putting in maximum effort. I know he wants to go out on a high note and we’re going to give him all the resources to succeed.

“That being said, we also want him to enjoy this season. Aric is a great husband and father, and this year will bring a lot

of cool moments that he’ll be able to share with his family. He’s earned this opportunity to go out on his terms.”

Almirola’s best seasons have come with SHR. He finished a career-high fifth in points in 2018 and scored a career-best 18 top-10 finishes in 2020.

“It means a lot to be able to walk away on my own terms. It’s been a great ride. I have been blessed beyond my wildest imagination and I honestly have no regrets,” Almirola said.

“Do I wish I would’ve won more races? Sure, and there’s still an opportunity this year. Do I wish I would’ve won a championship? Sure, and I’ve got a lot of drive to make that happen this year. I’m a competitive person. I want to win and I want to be a champion, but at the end of the day, I know that those things mean way less than being there for my family.

“I made it to the highest level of American motorsports as a professional racecar driver. It’s been amazing, with a lot of ups and downs and everything in between. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. But I’m ready to go back to being a fan.”

Almirola’s final season kicks off with the non-points Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum Feb. 5-6 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the official start of the 2022 campaign with the 64th annual Daytona 500 Feb. 20 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

About Smithfield Foods, Inc.:
Headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia, since 1936, Smithfield Foods, Inc. is an American food company with agricultural roots and a global reach. Our 63,000 team members are dedicated to producing “Good food. Responsibly.®” and have made Smithfield one of the world’s leading vertically integrated protein companies. We have pioneered sustainability standards for more than two decades, including our industry-leading commitments to become carbon negative in U.S. company-owned operations and reduce GHG emissions 30 percent across our entire U.S. value chain by 2030. We believe in the power of protein to end food insecurity and have donated hundreds of millions of food servings to our communities. Smithfield boasts a portfolio of high-quality iconic brands, such as Smithfield®, Eckrich® and Nathan’s Famous®, among many others. For more information, visit www.SmithfieldFoods.com, and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

About Stewart-Haas Racing:
Stewart-Haas Racing is the title-winning NASCAR team co-owned by three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation – the largest CNC machine tool builder in North America. The Kannapolis, North Carolina-based organization has won two NASCAR Cup Series titles, one NASCAR Xfinity Series championship and more than 90 NASCAR races, including such crown-jewel events as the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and Southern 500. For more information, please visit us online at StewartHaasRacing.com and on social at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn.

NASCAR Foursome Becoming Road Warriors – IMSA

Posted on: January 24th, 2022
Location: post

DAYTONA BEACH, FL. (Jan. 22, 2022) – A quartet of NASCAR young guns will leave their stock cars at home to compete in upcoming IMSA sports car events at Daytona International Speedway to open the 2022 season.

Austin Cindric, Harrison Burton, Chase Briscoe and Hailie Deegan – all part of the Ford Performance program in NASCAR – will pair up in two Ford Mustang GT4s for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season opener, the BMW M Endurance Challenge on Jan. 28. A day later, Cindric will step into the No. 15 Proton USA Mercedes-AMG GT3 and race in the new GTD PRO class at the 60th Rolex 24 At Daytona, which tips off the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship calendar.

Cindric and Burton will share the No. 41 PF Racing Mustang for the Michelin Pilot Challenge race, with Briscoe and Deegan in the No. 42 Mustang from the same stable. The goal for all four drivers is to gain valuable road course experience prior to embarking on their NASCAR seasons – the Camping World Truck Series for Deegan and the Cup Series for other three.

Cindric, the NASCAR Xfinity Series champion in 2020 who’ll be a Cup Series rookie this year with Team Penske, is no stranger to IMSA racing. The 22-year-old has been in 16 Michelin Pilot Challenge races with two wins and has six WeatherTech Championship races under his belt.

For Burton, 21-year-old driver of the Wood Brothers Racing Ford in NASCAR and the son of former NASCAR driver and current NBC Sports race analyst Jeff Burton, it will be a new experience on Daytona’s 3.56-mile course.

“I’ve had these conversations with my friends at Ford and at the Wood Brothers and at Penske. The one thing I wanted to work on to be better was (to) be a better road racer,” Harrison Burton said. “To have an opportunity to do that right off the bat is awesome and credit to them for being committed to helping me get better. That’s really all a driver can ask for.”

The drivers have the blessings of their teams to venture out of their regular workspace to compete at Daytona.

“We want to be flexible,” said Walter Czarnecki, vice chairman, Team Penske. “We want to give them opportunities to expand their skill set.”

The foursome will get plenty of seat time at Daytona to do so. It began Friday with three days of testing for both IMSA series at the Roar Before the Rolex 24. In Friday’s second session, Cindric was seventh fastest among the 30 cars in the Grand Sport (GS) class with a lap of 1 minute, 54.027 seconds (112.394 mph), while Briscoe was 12th at 1:54.367 (112.060 mph).

“That’s one thing that I’ve really buckled down and said for this 2022 year, that I just need to get as much seat time as I can, whether it’s in dirt, circle track stuff, whatever I can drive,” said Deegan, 20, who returns to David Gilliland Racing for a second trucks season in ‘22. “I just want to get in and get more experience and I feel like one thing I could improve on – I can improve on a lot of things – but I feel like one thing that really is coming up more in the NASCAR world is road course races. I feel like being able to race any type of road course is, I think, just going to better me as a driver.”

It will be a reunion for Deegan and Briscoe, who shared a Mustang for the Daytona race in 2020. Briscoe, driving for Stewart-Haas Racing in the Cup Series this season, is looking forward to the seat time and to seeing how Deegan has improved in the two years since they drove together.

“The last time we were there was the first time she’d ever ran anything on a road course,” Briscoe, 27, said. “Now to go back with her, she’s probably ran three or four truck races now (on road courses) and has run some other IMSA stuff, so it’ll be fun to see her improvement as a race car driver.

“She does a really good job in a lot of different disciplines, and it’ll be fun to go down there and do a totally fairly new discipline to both of us and go down there and just have a good time.”

When the Michelin Pilot Challenge race is over, the racing will end for three of the drivers. Not so for Cindric, who will make his fourth start in the Rolex 24, this time co-driving the No. 15 Mercedes with Dirk Mueller and Patrick Assenheimer. Cindric has a clear goal in mind.

“I have a very strong desire to win the Rolex 24 and that’s my motivating factor to do this race,” he said. “I’ve worked really hard every offseason to try and make something happen, not to get in a five-driver lineup just to go do the race and experience it. I’ve kind of done all that.

“I’d say the Rolex is probably the most realistic race I can look at and say I would like to win that race. I think this is a great opportunity for me to do that or at least establish my capabilities to do so and, like I said, against a group of drivers that are incredibly talented, incredibly experienced all in their cars.”

GTD PRO is just that – a class based on professional drivers. Most of the cars have factory backing. In a way, Cindric says, this Rolex 24 will mirror what he will face as a NASCAR Cup Series rookie – going head-to-head with the best pro drivers.

“Being in GTD PRO, you look at the entry list and my jaw kind of dropped,” Cindric said, “so I’m excited for that challenge.”