DAYTONA BEACH, FL :: When the 2013 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East season resumes with the NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 on Saturday, June 1, Brett Moffitt will have a score to settle with the legendary Bowman Gray Stadium.
The fifth-year driver from Grimes, Iowa has found success nearly everywhere the series has gone during his career. Moffitt’s nine wins have come at eight different tracks. But in the two previous events at “The Stadium” in Winston-Salem, N.C., it’s been nothing but heartache.
Two-thirds of the way through the inaugural Bowman Gray event in 2011, Moffitt was running third before a mechanical issue on a restart resulted in a wreck. The damage and lost track position was more than he could overcome as he finished 16th.
The Bowman Gray misfortune continued for Moffitt last year when he was running second at the white flag with a chance to challenge Corey LaJoie for the win, but was spun out by Darrell Wallace Jr. coming off Turn 2 and wound up relegated to a ninth-place finish.
In his remarkable – yet still relatively brief – career, Gresham Motorsports Park is only one track that Moffitt has raced at three or more times without earning a victory. This week’s NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 will be Moffitt’s third appearance at Bowman Gray, a place where he hopes to add to his wins list.
A Bowman Gray win would also end another drought for Moffitt, who for the first time in his career, has yet to reach Victory Lane through the first four races of a season. His overall winless streak is currently at a career-long 10 races with the last triumph a wire-to-wire win in Clearfield, Pa., last July.
Despite the lack of a win through the first quarter of the season, Moffitt has posted an average finish of fourth and brings a seven-point lead into the season standings to Bowman Gray.
| Race: | NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 |
|---|---|
| Place: | Bowman Gray Stadium, Winston-Salem, N.C. |
| Date: | Saturday, June 1 |
| Time: | 8 p.m. ET |
| TV Schedule: | SPEED, June 7, 3 p.m. ET |
| Track Layout: | .25-mile flat asphalt oval |
| 2012 Polesitter: | Kyle Larson |
| 2012 Winner: | Corey LaJoie |
| Event Schedule: | Practice1-1:45 p.m., Final Practice 2:15-3 p.m., Qualifying 6:15 p.m., Driver Autograph Session 6:45 p.m. |
| Track Contact: | Loren Pinilis, 336-765-6802, [email protected] |
| Track Twitter: | @BGSRacing |
| Event Twitter Hashtag: | #NASCARHall150 |
| NASCAR Contact: | Shon Sbarra, 704-309-5493, [email protected], @ShonSbarra |
FAST FACTS:
The Race: The fifth of 15 races on the 2013 schedule, the NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 will mark the third year in a row the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East has contested an event historic Bowman Gray Stadium.
The Procedure: The starting field is 24 cars, including provisionals. The first 20 cars will qualify through two-lap time trials. The remaining four spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 150 laps (37.5 miles).
The Track: Nicknamed “The Stadium” and “The Madhouse,” Bowman Gray is a flat quarter-mile asphalt oval. The track opened in 1946 and held 29 races from 1958-71 for what is now known as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Race Winners: Matt DiBenedetto won the inaugural NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 on June 4, 2011 while Corey LaJoie earned his first career victory in the event a year ago.
Pole Winners: Coleman Pressley took the first series pole at Bowman Gray in 2011 while Kyle Larson established the track record last year with a fast lap of 14.696 seconds (61.241 mph).
BOWMAN GRAY RACE NOTES:
Ingram to Serve as Grand Marshal: For the second year in a row the NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 will have a recent selectee serve as grand marshal. Jack Ingram, one of five selected on May 22 for the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s fifth induction class, will be in attendance Saturday for the festivities at Bowman Gray Stadium. In last year’s event NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2012 inductee Glen Wood served as grand marshal.
Getting Back in the Groove: The last NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race took place on April 25 at Richmond International Raceway, which will result in a span of 37 days before the return to action on June 1 at Bowman Gray. That will be the longest drought of inactivity for the series during its 15-race 2013 schedule.
Four Races, Four First-Time Winners: The first four races of the K&N Pro Series season have produced four-different winners, with each of them recording their first series victory. A previous winner in K&N Pro Series West action, Dylan Kwasniewski got his first East win in the opener at Bristol Motor Speedway and he has since been joined by Brandon Gdovic (Greenville Pickens Speedway), Ben Kennedy (Five Flags Speedway) and Ryan Gifford (Richmond International Raceway). The streak of first-time winners actually dates back to 2012 where Tyler Reddick was victorious in the finale at Rockingham Speedway in his series debut.
VIR Media Day: Bowman Gray race week will also see some additional media activities for a few drivers. Virginia International Raceway will have a NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Media Day at the facility on Tuesday, May 28. The track has scheduled media availability, pace car rides and karting activities. Drivers expected to be on hand for the day’s events include: Austin Dyne, Gray Gaulding, Brandon Gdovic, Jesse Little, Michael McGuire and Kenzie Ruston. The series is set to make its debut at the Alton, Va., road course on Saturday, Aug. 24.
HOME TRACKS: Burt Myers Out to Early Lead
Vying for his sixth track championship, Burt Myers is out to an early-season points lead in the famed Modified division of weekly NASCAR Whelen All-American Series competition at Bowman Gray Stadium. Myers will bring a lead of eight points on John Smith into this weekend’s twin 100-lap features while defending track titlist Tim Brown ranks third, 17 tallies behind Myers.
LAST TIME OUT: Richmond
The fourth event of the 2013 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East season took place at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. Here are some highlights:
• Ryan Gifford captured his first K&N Pro Series East victory when he held off the field for the final 23 laps in the Blue Ox 100.
• Brandon Gdovic recorded his second podium finish in four races this year with a runner-up effort.
• Rookie Cole Custer had his best finish yet when he crossed the line third.
• Gray Gaulding became the youngest pole winner (15 years, two months, 15 days) in series history and dominated the first half of the race before Corey LaJoie made contact with him on a restart on Lap 54 that knocked him out of the race lead.
• The race attracted 42 entries, the most since June 29, 2007 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (43).
NEXT TIME OUT: Iowa
Following the NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 at Bowman Gray Stadium, the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will head to Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa for the seventh annual Casey’s General Store 150 on Friday, June 7. It will be the first of two combination races with the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West at Iowa in 2013.
Story written by Jason Cunningham for NASCAR Home Tracks.
