K&N East Stat Advance: New Hampshire
Analyzing The United Site Services 70
United Site Services 70 Race Setup:
• William Byron is still holding onto the top spot in the season standings with 283 points. Austin Hill is the closest to him, trailing by 20 points.
• Only two drivers scheduled to compete at the “Magic Mile” have won here before, Eddie MacDonald (3) and Jesse Little (1).
• Last season’s event ended in dramatic fashion with Little in Victory Lane and MacDonald second.
At New Hampshire Motor Speedway
History
• Ground breaking for New Hampshire International Speedway, as New Hampshire Motor Speedway was originally named, started on August 13, 1989.
• The 1.058-mile oval is located on approximately 1,200 acres. The multi-use complex is the largest sports facility in New England.
• The official opening was June 5, 1990 and the first NASCAR event was a NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East combination event.
• Speedway Motorsports Inc., agreed to purchase New Hampshire International Speedway from Bob and Gary Bahre on January 11, 2008 and then renamed the track New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Notebook
• The first K&N East stand-alone race was held September 2, 1990.
• There have been 59 stand-alone K&N East races at NHMS, more than any other track in series history.
• There have been 28 different race winners, led by Brad Leighton’s eight. Eddie MacDonald is the active leader with three victories.
• There have been 31 different pole winners, led by Kelly Moore’s six. Ben Rhodes holds the series’ qualifying record.
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Data:
Race: #8 of 14.
Track Layout: 1.058-mile asphalt oval.
Race Length: 70 laps (74.06 miles)
Banking/Corners: 2-7 degrees.
Qualifying/Race Data:
2014 Race Winner: Jesse Little
2014 Pole Winner: Ben Rhodes
Track Qualifying Record: Ben Rhodes, Chevrolet, 29.622 seconds (128.580 mph), July 11, 2014.
Active Leaders at New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
Wins
Eddie MacDonald … 3
Jesse Little … 1
Top Fives
Eddie MacDonald … 5
Jay Beasley … 1
Jesse Little … 1
Top 10s
Eddie MacDonald … 13
Ronnie Bassett Jr. …2
Gray Gaulding … 2
Jesse Little … 2
Laps Completed
Eddie MacDonald … 2,643
John Salemi … 1,919
Jesse Little … 298
Laps Led
Eddie MacDonald … 175
Gary Gaulding … 53
Nick Drake … 10
Starts
Eddie MacDonald … 26
John Salemi … 28
Selected Driver Highlights:
Rico Abreu (No. 98 Accudoc Solutions/Go-Pro Motorplex/Curb Records Chevrolet)
• Is ranked ninth in the standings after recording one win and four top-10s.
• Earned his first NASCAR K&N Pro Series East victory at Ohio’s Columbus Motor Speedway on July 4.
• This will be his first series start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
• Is a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class.
Ronnie Bassett Jr. (No. 04 Bassett Gutters Ford)
• Is ranked eighth in the series’ point standings after tallying two top fives and three top 10s.
• In two previous starts at New Hampshire, he’s finished 10th (2013) and sixth (2014).
• Tied his best career finish with a runner-up showing at Iowa Speedway on May 16, 2015.
Jay Beasley (No. 42 Special Smiles Pediatric Dentistry Toyota)
• Is 12th in the series’ championship standings after earning three top fives and four top 10s.
• Has recorded three top-five finishes in the last four races.
• In his only showing at New Hampshire (2014), he finished fourth.
• Is a Rev Racing Drive for Diversity competitor.
Kyle Benjamin (No. 27 Eibach Ford)
• Is third in the standings after registering one win, two top-five and six top-10 finishes.
• Registered his first K&N win at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway on April 18, 2015.
• In his only showing at NHMS, he finished 11th (2014).
• Is a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class.
William Byron (No. 9 Liberty University Chevrolet)
• Leads the K&N East standings after racking up three wins, four top-five and five top-10 finishes.
• Earned his three victories at Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway on April 4, Iowa Speedway on May 16 (as the top K&N East finisher in the combo race) and Virginia’s Langley Speedway on June 20.
• This will be his first series start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
• Is a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class.
Nick Drake (No. 15 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota)
• Is ranked seventh this the K&N East standings after earning four top-10 finishes
• In his only start at New Hampshire (2014), he finished 24th after leading 10 laps.
Gray Gaulding (No. 12 Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Toyota)
• Is ranked sixth in the championship standings after recording four top-five finishes.
• In his two starts at NHMS, he finished eighth in both 2013 and 2014.
• Became the youngest pole winner in K&N East history (15 year, 2 months, 15 days) on April 2013 at Richmond.
• Became the youngest race winner in K&N Pro Series West history (15 year, 8 months, 30 days) in November 2013 at Phoenix.
• Became the youngest pole winner in K&N West history (15 years, 8 months, 16 days) in October 2013 at Kern.
Kaz Grala (No. 3 Kiklos Toyota)
• Is ranked 10th in the series’ standings after registering two top-five and four top-10 finishes.
• In his only start at New Hampshire (2014), he finished 10th after starting 28th.
• Car is owned by current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Ben Kennedy.
Scott Heckert (No. 34 Project Lifesaver Chevrolet)
• Is fourth in the K&N East standings after racking up one win, four top fives and five top 10s.
• In two starts at New Hampshire, he has finished 11th (2013) and sixth (2014).
Austin Hill (No. 22 A&D Welding/Don Rich Ford)
• Is second in the series’ standings after tallying one win, two top-five and six top-10 finishes.
• In his only showing at NHMS (2014), he finished seventh after starting 13th.
• Is a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class.
Jesse Little (No. 97 NASCAR Technical Institute Toyota)
• Has competed in two K&N East races this season, Bristol and Iowa, and finished 25th and third, respectively.
• This will be his fourth NHMS start. He has finished 23rd (2012), sixth (2013) and first (2014).
• In his first start this year, he won the 21 Means 21 pole award at Bristol.
Eddie MacDonald (No. 71 Grimm Contracting Chevrolet)
• This will be his third series start of the 2015 season as he competed at Bristol and Iowa and finished sixth and 12th, respectively.
• This will be his 27th start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
• He has three wins, five top fives and 13 top 10s at the “Magic Mile”
• His average finish at NHMS is 16.61 and his average start is 13.96.
Kenzie Ruston (No. 4 Rev Racing Toyota)
• Is 14th in the standings after registering three top-10 finishes.
• In two showings at New Hampshire, she’s finished 20th (2013) and 14th (2014).
• Her runner-up finish at Iowa Speedway in 2014 is the best finish for a female driver in series history.
Dalton Sargeant (No. 51 GALT Chevrolet)
• Is fifth in the K&N East standings after racking up four top fives and five top 10s.
• Is ranked 16th in the K&N West standings after earning one win and three top-five finishes.
• This will be his first series’ start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
• Is a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class.
Fresh Faces:
• Spencer Davis (No. 20 Ruud Chevrolet): This will be his K&N East debut. Has competed in five NASCAR Whelen Modified events and four NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour races this year.
• Matt Frahm (No. 1 Hattori Toyota): Will be making his season debut at NHMS. In three series starts he has finished eighth (Martinsville), 29th (New Hampshire) and 19th (New Hampshire).
• Anthony Kumpen (No. 36 Whelen Engineering Chevrolet): Finished 16th at his series debut at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway in February 2015. Is the 2014 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series champion.
• Grant Quinlan (No. 30 International Tool & Mold Ford): In his series debut at Columbus, he finished second after leading 63 laps.
Up To Speed In The East:
• This is the 29th season for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
• The 2015 season features 14 races at 12 different tracks across 10 states.
• Austin Hill opened the season with a win at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway on February 15th.
• William Byron earned three victories this season, his first at South Carolina’s Greenville Pickens Speedway on April 4, his second at Iowa Speedway on May 16 and his most recent at Virginia’s Langley Speedway on June 20.
• Kyle Benjamin recorded his first win at Tennessee’s Bristol Motor Speedway on April 18.
• Scott Heckert scored his first oval track win in the series when he won at North Carolina’s Bowman Gray Stadium on May 30.
• Most recently, Rico Abreu recorded his first NASCAR sanctioned victory at Ohio’s Columbus Motor Speedway on July 4th.