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By Adam Carabine Best Mind Games So far this season, we haven’t seen any dominance quite like what we did this weekend.  Kyle Larson was unstoppable - his win almost felt inevitable.  It wasn’t quite Martin Truex Jr. Coca-Cola 600-level dominance, but it was close. You’ve got to wonder if this gets demoralizing to the rest of the field at a certain point, or whether it gets in their heads.  I’m sure none of them would care to admit it, but it must sometimes feel like they can have an absolutely perfect day and still come up short to Larson in the 5.  Talk about mind games. This was the first time we’ve seen this kind of performance from Larson this season, but it likely won’t be the last. Best (or Worst?) Second Fiddle Speaking of being demoralized, Tyler Reddick had a stellar day.  He finished 2nd in both stages, earning 18 extra points, he even challenged for the win late, finishing a respectable P2 overall.  And yet, he wasn’t celebrating at the end. His post-race interview featured frustrations about how difficult it can be to pass in the Next-Gen car, mistakes on pit road that he had to overcome, etc.  “Same shit, different year,” he said dejectedly, dropping an S-bomb on live television. It got me wondering, who is the king of the 2nd place finish right now?  Tyler Reddick’s certainly got a case to be made. He’s the only current Cup Series regular who has more than double P2 finishes than he has wins.  (5 wins, 11 runner up finishes).  The only other driver with a similar ratio is Ross Chastain (4 wins, 8 runner up finishes), but Reddick really does take the cake. It reminds us of the age-old question in racing - would you rather finish dead last with no shot at a win? Or would you rather lose in a photo finish like Atlanta the week before? The NASCAR points system certainly rewards Tyler Reddick more than it does a Chris Buescher (the lone DNF of the race in Vegas - he finished P37), but which of the two feels better on Monday morning? Best Anniversary Gift They say that the traditional gift for a 20th anniversary is either china or platinum (side note - does anyone follow these traditions anymore?), but I imagine that the Drive For Diversity Program is happy with what they’re getting. Drive For Diversity, or D4D as it’s often shortened, is a program that NASCAR started in 2004 to attract more minority and female drivers, crew members, owners, sponsors, etc. to the sport.  NASCAR has been a traditionally white, male-driven sport, an image they are trying to shed, in an effort to be welcoming to everyone. Through the first nine races of the NASCAR season (if you count Trucks, Xfinity & Cup), graduates of the D4D program have been making waves. Graduates of the program have won four of these races.  Nick Sanchez and Rajah Caruth in the Craftsman Truck Series, and Daniel Suarez and Kyle Larson in Cup. This. Is. Important.  And also historic. The growth of this sport is dependent upon developing new young talent from all walks of life, and the key to that is representation.  Young people want to see athletes that look like them on TV. Best Follow Up Last week in The Freshies, I talked about the potential pressure on Vegas to put on a good show this weekend.  Still trying to carry on the momentum of “The Netflix Effect,” the schedule was tweaked for 2024 to have two SuperSpeedways in a row.  As far as viewership, that gamble seems to have paid off. However, the “Real Season” had to begin somewhere, and that pressure fell on Las Vegas, and to be honest, early returns look good.  Jeff Gluck’s Good-Race-Poll is looking to finish with around 77-78% approval. Vegas was our first opportunity to see the intermediate rules package - the package which has the most prevalence in the NASCAR calendar.  You can luck your way into a win at Daytona or Atlanta, but it takes a good car to win on an intermediate track. The longevity of “The Netflix Effect” will be put to the test again this upcoming weekend in Phoenix - traditionally not always the most exciting track - but I suppose by then we’re hoping that these new casual fans will have bought in. Best Stats Most statistical categories were (understandably) led by Kyle Larson.  He led the most laps, he earned the most stage points, etc. However, there are a couple of interesting other numbers to look at. Chase Elliott had the most Quality Passes (green flag passes within the Top 15) with 93, despite not really being a huge factor in the race.  It goes to show that numbers don’t always tell the full story. Perhaps less surprising, Ty Gibbs had the highest pass differential (+33), helped mostly by his ability to make his way back to the Top 5 after an uncontrolled tire penalty earlier.  While he still feels like a rookie in many ways, he’s showing he belongs in the Cup Series.  He’s tied for the second best average finish through three races.  (10.67 - tied with Ross Chastain) Most Tiring Issue Okay, bad pun aside, it was a weird day for tires. Chris Buescher fell victim to the ol’ loose lugnut trick, resulting in his tire flying off, him very quickly hitting the wall, and two of his crew members sent on an extended 2-week vacation.  Rookie move, #17 crew, save your loose lugnuts for the middle of the season, it’s much too early for vacation! Some aggressive tire pressures likely contributed to an early caution for Christopher Bell, when his tire came apart after just 10 laps.  There’s definitely a line, and Bell & Co crossed it there. As mentioned above, Ty Gibbs had an uncontrolled tire penalty after his pit crew lost one of the wheels and it floated out into the middle of the lane in pit road.  I wonder what Gibbs would have had for Larson had he not had to start at the rear. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Bubba Wallace’s #23 had what was essentially a tire that was “too controlled.”  They couldn’t get the lugnut off of the wheel, and eventually had to cut it off.  Unfortunately this ended Bubba’s streak of P5s to start the season, as the extra time on pit road cost him multiple laps. Highest Pressure If you think your job is stressful, imagine being the guy who had to do a rush job welding the SAFER Barriers back together after Chris Buescher broke it. At first, NASCAR kept the yellow flag out, meaning the laps would continue to tick down as he was welding away.  Sounds stressful.  But then NASCAR decided it might take too long so then they threw the red flag out. Now imagine welding (first of all, I don’t even understand this magic of fusing metals together), while a crowd of rabid race fans watches on, knowing that the only way their entertainment resumes is if you finish your work.  Kudos to the guy doing it, the red flag only lasted just over 10 minutes.  I hope he’s on salary and not getting paid by the minute.

LAS VEGAS–NASCAR’s Corporate sponsor HendrickCars.com , owned by Rick Hendrick of Hendrick Motorsports was a big winner at the Pennzoil 400 weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with checkered flags in both the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Cup Series.  However, the biggest win in the 2024 season thus far has proven to be NASCAR for its efforts in creating a more equitable, diverse, inclusive environment and on track product. NASCAR’s 2024 season has seen at least one Drive 4 Diversity alum win each week across all three touring series so far.This season is also the 20th anniversary year since the D4D program began.  Nick Sanchez won in the truck series race at Daytona and Daniel Suarez won in the Cup Series in Atlanta before race weekend kicked off in Las Vegas. NCTS driver Rajah Caruth who won his first career pole and victory in the same day and 2021 Cup Series Champion Kyle Larson, both backed by HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, were first across the finish line in their respective series this weekend; the weekend that falls on the eve of the anniversary that celebrates African-American NASCAR Hall of Famer and agent of change for inclusion Wendell Scott’s first Grand National Series start. Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports has gone back to back in Las Vegas after winning the Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube, making his 24th victory in 334 Cup Series races. This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in 2024 and his third victory and 12th top-10 finish in 16 races at LVMS.  “I think that’s really important. That’s really cool, with Suárez winning last week.  I was super proud and happy for Rajah on Friday night not only because it’s Rajah and everything that he means to the sport, but with HendrickCars.com on his truck, and then myself winning here today, it is pretty cool for sure. The D4D program was good for my career. Kind of gave me my introduction into stock car racing and gained a lot of experience not only on the racetrack but off of it, as well, with everything that they offered there at Rev Racing when I was there. I’m sure it’s changed quite a bit since 2012, but regardless, they’ve produced some great drivers, and it’s cool to see. Hopefully we can add some more D4D guys to the new championship list down the road.” FInishing second, California native Tyler Reddick posted his fifth top-10 finish in nine races at LVMS and his first top-10 of the 2024 season. Ryan Blaney, the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion came in third posting his 10th top-10 finish in nine races at LVMS. Larson now leads the NASCAR Cup series by 8 points over Ryan Blaney.

LAS VEGAS–One day removed from Black History Month a monumental celebration took place on the front-stretch of Las Vegas Motor Speedway that will forever be cemented in Black history and in the history of NASCAR forever. Rajah Kirby Caruth, a young but mature HBCU (Historically Black College and University) senior at Winston-Salem State University became the third Black driver to win a NASCAR National series race, joining Wendell Scott and Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr.  In the 2024 season there have only been three races and Caruth has not yet placed outside of a top-10 finish in the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet for HendrickCars.com .  Caruth started off his 30th NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race, the Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 presented by Westgate Resorts from his first career pole and finished the day with his first victory and third top-10 finish of 2024 during NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity Program’s 20th Anniversary.  Caruth battled winningest Truck Series driver and 2-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion Kyle Busch who moonlighted as his teammate in Friday’s Truck Series race in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet. He also led a total of 38/134 laps and gained spots on pit road on his way to victory. His final charge to the checkered flag came after race leaders received pass through penalties for speeding on pit road during green flag pit stops. With no cautions in the final 21 laps, Caruth won by a 0.851 second margin of victory. As a graduate of NASCAR’s Drive 4 Diversity program, Caruth raced at LVMS in 2023 during his debut season as a full time driver with the support of Petty GMS and the Wendell Scott Foundation, celebrating the anniversary of Wendell Scott’s start at NASCAR’s highest level (March 4, 1961 in Spartanburg, S. Carolina).  GMS Racing ceased operations at the end of the 2023 season leaving Caruth’s future in the NCTS uncertain. It wasn’t until late in the off season coming into 2024 that he joined Spire Motorsports full-time as the driver for the No. 71 Chevy Silverado.  Initially, Hendrick Motorsports joined Caruth as primary sponsor for 10 races starting with NASCAR’s Daytona season opener on Feb. 16th and in the last week has now joined Caruth as primary sponsor for the full season of 23 races. Had it not been for HendrickCars.com sponsorship Caruth said,   “It would have been tough not having a family that owns a team or not being born into this. So, I got really lucky and fortunate that we started that relationship last year. That they believed in me enough to represent them not only just here at the race track but at other things that I do away from the track. I'm just super thankful and excited for more.” Similar to Hendrick Motorsports Cup Series driver William Byron, Caruth unlike many drivers in the sport took an unconventional route that began with playing video games and using the iRacing digital platform before moving to Charlotte, N.C from Washington, D.C. for a chance to turn his dreams into a reality. “I’m really glad that both of my parents are here, especially my Dad, and I know my sister is watching too because they’ve been my rock since my dad took me to my first race. Really, both of my parents along with my grandad, taught me that first experience and really enabled me to put in the work and chase the dream” said Caruth. “Living by myself in North Carolina, I can’t imagine for a mom and dad to send their 18 year-old kid to a completely different culture, a completely different lifestyle to live on his own, work at a race shop and be in a completely different environment. But, I’m glad they’re here and they’ve been here with me every step of the way. A blessing that I’ve had is my sister, my parents, a lot of close friends and others that have really helped elevate me during the tough times and celebrate through the good ones.” He is often described as mature beyond his years or having “been here before” and his first win was an example of how poised of a driver and extraordinarily talented he is.  The Victoria’s Voice 200 was a relatively clean race in stark contrast to the last two drafting tracks, Daytona and Atlanta Motor Speedway with minimal cautions.  With NASCAR’s 'win and you’re in' playoff format, Caruth becomes the second driver to make it into the 2024 NCTS playoffs in the fall.

LAS VEGAS--The 2024 Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube front row is set after a windy qualifying session at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  Joey Logano driver of the No. 22 Pennzoil Ford for Team Penske will lead the field to green from the front row for the third consecutive time after winning the Busch Light Pole Award for a second time in the 2024 season with a lap of 29.291 seconds, 184.357mph. This pole award comes just a week after Logano was given a pass through penalty at the start of the race at Atlanta Motor Speedway and $10,000 fine for wearing an illegal webbed glove that was not SEI approved.  This is Logano’s 30th pole in 546 NASCAR Cup Series starts and his third pole in 22 races at the Nevada track.  Starting beside Logano from the front of the pack in 2nd is the two-time LVMS race winner and 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. This will be his second top-10 start of the 2024 season and his 11th in 16 races at the track. Austin Cindric, Penske teammate of Logano in the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford, will start on Row 2 of Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 race after qualifying third. This is the fourth top-10 start at the high desert track and third in three races this season.  Carson Hocevar of the No. 77 remier Security Chevrolet qualified 14th and was the fastest qualifying rookie at a speed of 183.181mph. The green flag for the Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube will wave on Sunday March 3rd at Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 12:50p.m. PST.

LAS VEGAS– “To the top!” Jamie Little exclaimed on the FS1 broadcast after Rajah Caruth, driver of the No. 71 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports put down the best lap at qualifying for the Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race tonight at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This is the first career pole for the twenty-one year old African-American driver from Washington D.C. Earlier in the week it was announced that the billionaire HMS owner, Rick Hendrick has extended sponsorship of the highly sought-after truck series driver from 10 to 23 races.  When it comes down to feeling more comfortable in the seat knowing that he has the extra support from HMS, he doesn't plan on relaxing anytime soon. "I think, definitely compared to the start of last season I think I was a little bit more erratic. I don't really want to say nervous but, more feeling like I needed to get to this spot now or 'this corner is everything' right? And that put me in some bad spots" said Caruth. "I've just been making the best out of days and obviously I haven't been perfect but I feel like I've done a really solid job and we can just continue that tonight". Starting on the front row for tonight’s truck race with Caruth is Christian Eckes in the No. 19 Chevrolet for McAnally Hilgemann Racing.  Caruth’s qualifying lap time was 30.501 at a speed of 177.043 and ranks 4 spots behind Eckes in the best 10 consecutive lap averages with an average speed of 173.072.

Press Release | TRACKHOUSE RACING NASHVILLE - Fresh off his historic victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway Sunday, NASCAR Cup Series driver Daniel Suárez joined Pitbull on stage Wednesday night in his Trackhouse Racing team's hometown of Nashville, Tennessee. Suárez's victory by 0.003 seconds in a three-wide finish was the third-closest race in NASCAR history. It also marked the second career victory for the Monterrey, Mexico native, the only Mexican driver to win a Cup Series race. The 32-year-old Suárez appeared in a video montage Wednesday highlighting the victory then walked on stage after an introduction by Pitbull, who is in the midst of The Trilogy Tour alongside Enrique Iglesias and Ricky Martin. Justin Marks and Pitbull are co-owners of Trackhouse Racing whose corporate offices are in Nashville and race shop is based in Concord, North Carolina. The team fields full-time Cup Series Chevrolets for Suárez and Ross Chastain. In addition to his co-owner role, attending several races and serving as the Grand Marshall for the Daytona 500, Pitbull last fall launched the “TRACKHOUSE” album series with his twelfth full-length offering and first album in four years, TRACKHOUSE reflects his passion for NASCAR and, of course, his elevated musicality. The Trilogy Tour schedule and other upcoming shows are available here.

Press Release | SPIRE MOTORSPORTS MOORESVILLE, N.C. (February 28, 2024) – HendrickCars.com has extended its partnership of driver Rajah Caruth and Spire Motorsports’ No. 71 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) team to include the entire calendar of races on the 2024 schedule. It was previously announced HendrickCars.com would serve as Caruth’s primary sponsor for 10 races this year. The 21-year-old Washington D.C. native opened the season with a third-place finish at Daytona International Speedway and backed it up with an eighth-place showing last weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway. “Rajah has had a tremendous start to 2024,” said Gary Davis, executive vice president, Hendrick Automotive Group. “When you combine his on-track potential, how he represents himself and HendrickCars.com, his impressive social media presence, and the incredible fan support he receives, we couldn’t pass on supporting him for the entire season.” HendrickCars.com is the online home for everything Hendrick Automotive Group. Visitors can shop thousands of new or pre-owned vehicles, locate centers for service and collision repair, receive a value to sell or trade their car, chat online with customer service, discover career opportunities, learn more about vehicle protection programs, and explore how the company gives back to the community. “It’s pretty special to have HendrickCars.com on my chest,” said Caruth. “I think about Phoenix last year when I drove the Xfinity car for Hendrick Motorsports that, within itself, was an incredible moment. Knowing that HendrickCars.com has extended their relationship with Spire Motorsports and my No. 71 team kind of leaves me speechless. I’m super-grateful because they don’t do that for just anyone. For me to be affiliated with that group and have their support is an honor. I’m excited to get on with the rest of the season. We’ve gotten off to a good start and I think the race in Las Vegas on Friday night is going to show our potential for the rest of the season.” Caruth is currently fifth in the NCTS championship point standings and heads into Las Vegas Motor Speedway with an impressive 5.5 finishing average to open his 2024 NCTS campaign. Caruth has one prior NCTS start and three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the 1.5-mile Las Vegas oval and looks to better his venue-best 20th-place effort in Friday night’s 200-miler. “After a strong start to the season, Rajah Caruth and the No 71 team have a lot of positive momentum heading into Las Vegas,” said Spire Motorsports president Doug Duchardt. “This is great news and we’re really proud HendrickCars.com has decided to extend its support to fill out the entire season. Rajah is one NASCAR’s brightest young driving talents he’s been very impressive in the first two races of 2024. He has tremendous potential, and we expect to see him racing for wins on a regular basis. We’re confident we’ll see Rajah and the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado in Victory Lane before long.” The Victoria’s Voice 200 from Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be televised live on FS1 Friday, March 1, beginning at 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The third of 23 NCTS races on the 2024 schedule will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

(Photo Source: Twitter.com/HendrickCars) Press Release | HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS CONCORD, N.C. (Feb. 27, 2024) – In 2024, Hendrick Motorsports will enter 10 NASCAR Xfinity Series races with primary sponsorship from HendrickCars.com. Each of the organization’s four NASCAR Cup Series drivers will compete in the No. 17 Chevrolet Camaro this season, along with a special appearance by popular road racing veteran Boris Said. The schedule will kick off March 9 at Phoenix Raceway with the first of four starts for 2024 DAYTONA 500 champion William Byron and crew chief Brandon McSwain, the lead engineer on the No. 24 Cup Series team. The remaining six races for the No. 17 team will be called by 2014 Xfinity Series champion crew chief Greg Ives, who has 15 NASCAR national series wins. The No. 17 HendrickCars.com team made four Xfinity Series starts in 2022 and six in 2023. In 10 combined appearances, it has accumulated three pole positions, six top-five finishes and seven top-10s, including three second-place results. “The No. 17 is a big part of our story, and it would be special to see it win – and win often – during our 40th anniversary season,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports and chairman and CEO of Hendrick Automotive Group. “The sponsorship has been a big success for HendrickCars.com and our dealerships, and we’re pleased to add more races and take it to another level in 2024. It’s victory lane or bust.” The No. 17 car number has a rich history with Hendrick Motorsports. NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip drove it to nine wins for the team from 1987 to 1990, including in the 1989 DAYTONA 500. The car number was also driven by Ricky Hendrick in various races, including in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2000 and 2001. The HendrickCars.com paint scheme will again be based on the No. 17 truck driven by Hendrick during his 2001 rookie season. HendrickCars.com is Hendrick Automotive Group’s online destination for new and pre-owned vehicle shopping, locating centers for service and collision repair, exploring career opportunities, and learning about vehicle investment protection. It also sponsors Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team, NHRA champion Greg Anderson and other racing efforts at the grassroots level. NO. 17 CHEVROLET – 2024 NASCAR XFINITY SERIES SCHEDULE March 9, Phoenix Raceway (William Byron) March 23, Circuit of The Americas (Kyle Larson) May 11, Darlington Raceway (William Byron) May 25, Charlotte Motor Speedway (Chase Elliott) June 8, Sonoma Raceway (Boris Said) June 22, New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Alex Bowman) July 6, Chicago Street Course (Kyle Larson) July 13, Pocono Raceway (William Byron) Aug. 31, Darlington Raceway (Chase Elliott) Sept. 14, Watkins Glen International (William Byron)

By Adam Carabine Best Finish (...ever?) I mean, can we talk about that finish? We’ve seen close finishes before, but it’s been a while since we’ve seen a three-wide photo finish.  I’m not going to lie, I haven’t been a NASCAR fan long enough to remember anything similar.   While the margin of victory at Atlanta wasn’t the closest in history, it might’ve been the most exciting.   It’s funny, there was some trepidation coming into this race, from fans and drivers alike.  There are the old-school people who are sad that Atlanta got reconfigured into this SuperSpeedway Lite a few years ago.  There are the ‘racing traditionalists’ who believe that there are too many plate-style drafting tracks on the schedule already.  There are even those who prefer Daytona and Talladega, and feel Atlanta doesn’t measure up because it’s an entire mile shorter. All of those haters?  Silent after Sunday’s race. Worst Impression of a Duck Joey Logano’s glove-related penalty was a strange one.  In case you missed it, he was dinged for using gloves that were not up to safety code.  They showed him on the broadcast during qualifying with this weird extra webbing between his fingers, almost like one of those wingsuit things but for your hands.  Not only was it safety related, there was speculation that this could actually be an aerodynamic advantage.   Technically the gloves were illegal because once they were modified, they were no longer up to the strict safety code.  NASCAR easily could have just sent Logano to the rear for modifying equipment, but I get the sense that they were pissed when they discovered it and decided that the heftier safety penalty (including a pass-through pit road to start the race) might serve as a warning to others looking for even the slightest advantage. I suppose we shouldn’t knock the idea - he did wind up on the front row next to pole-sitter Michael McDowell. Best Off-Season Plan When I spoke with Daniel Suarez at the championship race in Phoenix last November, he tried to downplay that ‘24 was going to be an important season for him.  He stressed that some years go better than others, and that it was important to learn from the years that don’t go as well. He also mentioned that he cancelled his vacation plans over the off-season, with the goal of getting back to the shop in Charlotte sooner to start working on things.   While I’m sure that wasn’t as fun as a sunny beach destination might’ve been, it looks like Suarez got the last laugh in this one.  Hard work pays off - could this be the first of many piñata smashes for Suarez this year? Most Egg on Faces Sometimes it’s fun to go back and dunk on people who had bad takes on the Atlanta schedule change.  Sure, it was one great race, but hey - I’ve been wrong before, so this is all meant in good fun! Best Stats Austin Cindric had the best average running position through the race - P8.   Kyle Larson had the best pass differential of any driver, he was +33. Ryan Blaney was your stage point king, earning 17 of a possible 20. Todd Gilliland led the most laps on the day with 58 (another new career high for him). The number of drivers who have run every lap (another way to say finished on the lead lap each race) has already dwindled down to just 10. Most Pressure When the 2024 schedule was released last year, Atlanta was a hot topic of discussion.  Not only was the second Atlanta date being moved into the first round of the playoffs, but NASCAR pushed the spring race to slot number two, ensuring two SuperSpeedway races in a row. This effectively was seen as a move to carry forward momentum, in multiple senses.  Viewership of the Daytona 500 is always comparatively quite high, and the hope was that a product similar to Daytona immediately following it might be enough to grab new fans.  And let’s not forget “The Netflix Effect,” which was another attempt to collect these new casual fans.   All of this to say, Las Vegas has some hefty pressure on its shoulders now to carry this momentum even further.  Many drivers have said that the real season starts at Las Vegas, the first true intermediate track of the season.  Atlanta delivered to the casual fans - what will Vegas have in store? Biggest Callout Jeff Gluck with the mic drop:

Each Tuesday here on Racing Refresh I'll be posting the top ten tweets of the previous week from notable personalities within NASCAR. Let's get started! 10. I do miss the days when there were a boatload of entries on the entry list period. I'm afraid that's gone the way of the dodo. But, never say never. 9. I am all for this! We need to showcase everybody in the sport. Yes, the drivers are the most important thing but there's so much more to this sport on and off the track. 8. You're telling me it's been the same candy for 57 races? Yowza... 7. This is pretty reminiscent of what Kyle Petty said about Darlington in 1995. 6. It did feel like an excessive amount. What was going on?!? 5. Glove-Gate feels like it could be a thing in 2024. We will have to see if NASCAR addresses this matter further. 4. It hasn't been the start to the season the 3 team needed. 34 weeks to go though. 3. Have you ever.... 2. We're going old school in a few weeks at Bristol! I'll be ready to rattle a cage or two! 1. NO. I. Never.

Press Release | THORSPORT RACING SANDUSKY, Ohio (February 26, 2024)  – Soda Sense ®  has extended its partnership with ThorSport Racing becoming a primary partner of Ty Majeski’s No. 98 Ford F-150 for multiple races in 2024 starting at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 16.    Soda Sense ®  is proud to be a leading supplier of CO2 for at-home soda maker machines, offering simple and sustainable carbonation solutions for our customers. Founded in 2019 in Seymour, Wisconsin, our mission is to make sustainability simple through our revolutionary On Demand exchange program, The CO2 Refill Club. We are committed to eliminating single-use plastic waste, starting with our carbonation source. Soda Sense is the only company that fills all their canisters with 100% renewably sourced, certified organic, and kosher CO2, right here in the USA. Each of their 60L canisters saves over 170+ single-use plastic bottles, and to date, Soda Sense has helped eliminate 100’s of millions of plastic bottles that would otherwise end up in landfills or the ocean. Our dedication to environmental responsibility is at the heart of everything we do, and we will continue to strive towards a greener future for all. For more information about our soda maker machines, The CO2 Refill Club, and our commitment to sustainability please visit our website at  Sodasense.com .   Soda Sense ®  will also represent Super Late Model and Wisconsin native Luke Fenhaus who is slated to make his NASCAR Truck Series debut in a ThorSport Racing Ford F-150 later this year.      “We are happy to be back with ThorSport Racing and Ty Majeski, our primary driver, this season as well as having representation with Luke Fenhaus as he begins his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series career,” said Mike Nelson, President of Soda Sense.   Soda Sense ®  continues to reach audiences who are interested in getting a home soda maker machine and are looking for cheaper ways to consume bubbly beverages without the environmental impact.