HAMPTON, VA :: The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will return to action with the Visit Hampton VA 175 at Langley Speedway on Saturday, June 22 in Hampton, Va. Below is a statistical look at the performance of the series and selected drivers:
Langley Race Setup:
• Brett Moffitt brings the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East season points lead to Langley Speedway looking for his first victory of the season, and to end the longest winless drought of his career. He has finished second in both of his previous Langley starts.
• There are three Virginia natives on the entry list, all looking for their first home state win. Gray Gaulding hails from Colonial Heights, Brandon Gdovic from Yorktown and Sam Hunt from Midlothian.
• Neither of the previous NKNPS East winners at Langley are entered this year, opening it up for three-different winners in three all-time series visits.
AT LANGLEY SPEEDWAY:
History
• Originally a .8-mile horse track, the grounds became an auto racing facility in 1950 and cut the distance of the dirt racing surface to .396 miles. It was converted to asphalt in 1968.
• The track held nine NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races from 1964-70 and 14 NASCAR Nationwide Series events from 1982-88.
• The track has played host to the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour since 2010.
Notebook
• The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East debuted at the facility in 2011 with Virginia native Sergio Peña the inaugural winner.
• Chase Elliott se the series record for the youngest all-time pole winner in the 2012 event. His mark has since been surpassed.
Langley Speedway Data
Race: #7 of 15 (6/22/13)
Track Layout: .396-mile asphalt oval
• Race Length: 175 laps (70 miles)
• Banking–turns: six degrees
• Banking–straights: none
Qualifying/Race Data
2012 race winner: Corey LaJoie
2012 pole winner: Chase Elliott
Track qualifying record: Chase Elliott (86.927 mph, 16.400 seconds, 6/23/12)
ACTIVE SERIES CAREER LEADERS:
Wins
1. Brett Moffitt … 9
2. Eddie MacDonald … 6
3. Dale Quarterley … 6
Poles
1. Brett Moffitt … 10
2. Dale Quarterley … 4
3. Cale Conley … 2
Ben Kennedy … 2
Eddie MacDonald … 2
Top Fives
1. Brett Moffitt … 32
Dale Quarterley … 31
3. Eddie MacDonald … 29
Top 10s
1. Eddie MacDonald … 78
2. Dale Quarterley … 67
3. Brett Moffitt … 36
Laps Completed
1. Eddie MacDonald … 21,172
2. Dale Quarterley … 18,816
3. John Salemi … 8,182
Laps Led
1. Brett Moffitt … 1,764
2. Dale Quarterley … 706
3. Eddie MacDonald … 668
SELECT DRIVER HIGHLIGHTS:
Cole Custer (No. 00 Haas Automation Chevrolet)
• Has three top 10s through his first six NASCAR K&N Pro Series East starts and ranks ninth in points as a rookie.
• Best finish was third at Richmond International Raceway. Has led laps at both Richmond and Iowa Speedway.
• This will be his first NKNPS East appearance at Langley Speedway. He has previous experience there in other series.
Gray Gaulding (No. 20 Krispy Kreme Toyota)
• Recorded top-10 finishes in five of his first six NKNPS East starts and ranks fifth in points as a rookie. Best finish was second at Five Flags Speedway.
• Was runner-up in the non-points UNOH Battle At The Beach on the short track at Daytona International Speedway and finished sixth in the NKNPS West opener at Phoenix International Raceway.
• Became the youngest pole winner in NKNPS East history at Richmond (15 years, two months, 15 days).
• This will be his first NKNPS East appearance at Langley. He has previous experience there in other series.
Brandon Gdovic (No. 46 Aquis Communications/WindStax.com Toyota)
• Has a win and 17 top 10s in 31 career NKNPS East starts. Earned that first career victory this year at Greenville.
• Ranks fourth in points this season with three top fives through six events.
• Has an average finish of 14th with a best result of fourth (2012) in the two previous NKNPS East races at Langley.
Ryan Gifford (No. 2 Universal Technical Institute/NTI Toyota)
• Has a win, a pole and 17 top 10s in 46 career NKNPS East starts. The win came this year at Richmond.
• Ranks sixth in points this season with three top 10s in six races.
• Has an average finish of 21st with a best result of 18th (2012) in the two previous NKNPS East races at Langley.
Ben Kennedy (No. 96 Ben Kennedy Racing Chevrolet)
• Has two wins, two poles and 14 top 10s in 33 career NKNPS East starts.
• Earned his first win and second career pole earlier this season at Five Flags. The second win came at Bowman Gray Stadium.
• Ranks third in points with four top 10s through six races.
• Has an average finish of 20th with a best result of 18th (2011) in the two previous NKNPS East races at Langley.
Dylan Kwasniewski (No. 98 Royal Purple/Rockstar Energy Drink Chevrolet)
• Has two wins and six top 10s in nine career NKNPS East races. Earned the first win in the 2013 opener at Bristol Motor Speedway and was credited with a win last time out in the combination race at Iowa as the highest East finisher.
• Currently ranks second in points with four top 10s through six events.
• The 2011 NKNPS West Sunoco Rookie of the Year and 2012 series champion, he recorded five wins, seven poles, 20 top fives and 24 top 10s in 28 career starts in that series.
• This will be his first appearance at Langley.
Eddie MacDonald (No. 71 Grimm Construction Chevrolet)
• Has six wins, two poles and 78 top 10s in 164 career starts.
• Ranks seventh in points entering Langley on the strength of three top 10s in six races.
• Has finished in the top 10 in 20 of his last 25 starts dating back to the 2011 season.
• Has an average finish of 11th with a best result of ninth (2012) in the two previous NKNPS East races at Langley.
Brett Moffitt (No. 11 Saitama Toyopet Toyota)
• Has nine wins, 10 poles, 23 podiums and 39 total top-10 finishes in 53 career starts. Is tied for 12th in NKNPS East history in wins and is tied for ninth in poles.
• The points leader after six races this season, he has finished in the top three in the final standings in each of his previous four seasons in the series, and has earned multiple wins each year.
• Is currently experiencing the longest winless streak of his career, now at 12 races.
• Has finished second in both of the two previous NKNPS East races at Langley. Led a race-high 115 laps in 2012.
Bryan Ortiz (No. 4 Rev Racing Toyota)
• Has 12 top 10s in 20 NKNPS East races with a best result of third last year at Bowman Gray. Also finished third in the non-points event at Daytona’s short track in February.
• Currently ranks 10th in points with a best season result of sixth at Five Flags.
• Finished sixth at Langley last year in his only previous series event at the track.
Kenzie Ruston (No. 34 AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet)
• Has three top fives in her first six races as a rookie.
• Her third-place finish at Greenville was the best by a female driver in NKNPS East history, surpassing Danica Patrick’s sixth-place effort at Dover International Speedway in 2010.
• Earned back-to-back top-five finishes at Greenville and Five Flags – a first for a female driver in series history.
UP TO SPEED:
• The 2013 season is the 27th for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
• The 2013 schedule features 15 races at 13 different tracks across 10 states.
• The competition season opened with the non-points UNOH Battle At The Beach on Feb. 19 on the short track at Daytona International Speedway. Cameron Hayley won the K&N Pro Series feature.
• Dylan Kwasniewski took the checkered flag in the first points race of the season on March 16 at Bristol Motor Speedway. He assumed the lead when polesitter Michael McGuire was spun out under caution on Lap 30 and held it the rest of the way.
• Brandon Gdovic captured his first career victory on April 6 at Greenville Pickens Speedway. Brett Moffitt earned his ninth career pole prior to the race, which was originally scheduled to run on March 23 but was postponed due to rain.
• In the first points race in series history in the state of Florida, the Sunshine State’s own Ben Kennedy earned his second career pole and went on to lead all 150 laps in the inaugural event at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola on April 13.
• On April 25 at Richmond International Raceway, Gray Gaulding became the youngest pole winner in series history and Ryan Gifford captured his first career checkered flag.
• It was Moffitt who took the pole and led a race-high 123 laps, but Kennedy came out with the checkered flag at Bowman Gray Stadium on June 1.
• Last time out in the East-West combination race at Iowa Speedway, Anderson Bowen captured the pole in his series debut at Kwasniewski was credited with a victory as the highest-finishing East driver.
