No. 10 Smithfield Ford Racing: Aric Almirola New Hampshire Advance
Aric Almirola
New Hampshire Advance
Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing
Event Overview
● Event: Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 (Round 22 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, July 18
● Location: New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon
● Layout: 1.058-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 301 laps/318.46 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stages 1: 75 laps / Stage 2: 110 laps / Final Stage: 116 laps
● TV/Radio: NBCSN / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Notes of Interest
● In the last three races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, Almirola is ranked third in points earned with an average finish of 7.0 and 56 laps led.
● History at New Hampshire: In 18 starts at New Hampshire, Almirola has four top-10 finishes and two top-fives with 56 laps led.
● Almirola’s best finish this year is fourth at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway. His second-best finish was sixth at Richmond (Va.) Raceway, and his next-best was 11th at Phoenix Raceway – all hosting the 750-horesepower, high-downforce package that will be utilized this weekend at New Hampshire.
● Crew chief Mike Bugarewicz has one top-five finish and four top-10s at New Hampshire in seven outings as a Cup Series crew chief.
● Almirola’s 2020 season proved successful when he earned a career-high 18 top-10 finishes, six top-fives and led 305 laps. During the season, Almirola went on a five-race streak of top-five finishes and earned nine consecutive top-10s.
● Career Stats: Almirola has career totals of two wins, two poles, 25 top-five finishes, 81 top-10s and 868 laps led in 373 NASCAR Cup Series starts.
● Smithfield Foods celebrates 10 years of partnership with Almirola this season with a special campaign called Taste Victory.As one of the most active partners in NASCAR, Smithfield plans to engage fans all year long by hosting a microsite that provides the opportunity to win when Almirola wins or finishes inside the top-10. When Almirola wins, one fan wins $10,000, and 10 fans win a gift card for each top-10 finish. The microsite also doubles as an Aric Almirola fan page and entertainment source where fans can get behind the wheel of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford with a custom racing game, and learn more about Almirola with fast facts, favorite recipes and custom content about his life on and off the track. Visit www.tastevictory.com to learn more. Thanks to Almirola’s Feb. 11 win in his Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500, one lucky fan has already won $10,000.
● Beyond the 10 YouTube Series:In 2021, Almirola continues to share his life beyond the No. 10 Smithfield Ford with season three of his award-winning YouTube series. Fans and media can subscribe on YouTube to see Almirola’s personality on and off the track. Episodes have already featured life as a dad, a husband and an athlete, and it gives fans a unique perspective on what goes on in the life of a professional NASCAR driver. Fans can also follow Almirola’s social media channels: @Aric_Almirola on Twitter and Instagram, and @AricAlmirola on Facebook.
● After the season’s first 21 points-paying events, Almirola and the Smithfield Ford team sit 27th in the championship with 331 points, 505 behind leader Denny Hamlin and 232 behind the playoff cutoff line.
Aric Almirola, Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
What do you like about going to New Hampshire Motor Speedway?
“It kind of takes you back to Saturday-night, short-track racing. It’s a mile track but it races like a short track. You go there and see the Modified division there and it makes you feel like when you were a kid and racing Late Models. It’s a fun track to race at and I’ve had some success there and I’ve run well there in the past.”
Are you looking forward to getting to another track that fits the No. 10 team’s strengths this season?
“I have had New Hampshire circled on the calendar for a while now. It’s somewhere that I have had a lot of success at since joining SHR. We were even in position to win there my first year with the team. This package has been our strong suit this year, as we saw at Nashville, Richmond and Phoenix, which gives us even more confidence and excitement heading there this weekend.”
No. 10 Smithfield Ford Team Roster
Primary Team Members
Driver: Aric Almirola
Hometown: Tampa, Florida
Crew Chief: Mike Bugarewicz
Hometown: Lehighton, Pennsylvania
Car Chief: Jerry Cook
Hometown: Toledo, Ohio
Engineer: Lee Deese
Hometown: Rockingham, North Carolina
Engineer: James Kimbrough
Hometown: Pensacola, Florida
Spotter: Joel Edmonds
Hometown: Dobson, North Carolina
Over-The-Wall Members
Front Tire Changer: Ryan Mulder
Hometown: Sioux Center, Iowa
Rear Tire Changer: Michael Johnson
Hometown: Andover, New York
Tire Carrier: Tyler Bullard
Hometown: King, North Carolina
Jack Man: Sean Cotton
Hometown: Mooresville, North Carolina
Fuel Man: James “Ace” Keener
Hometown: Fortuna, California
Road Crew Members
Mechanic: Tony Silvestri
Hometown: Sylvania, Ohio
Mechanic: Robbie Fairweather
Hometown: Westbrookville, New York
Engine Tuner: Matt Moeller
Hometown: Monroe, New York
Tire Specialist: Russel Simpson
Hometown: Medford, New York
Transporter Co-Driver: Dale Lackey
Hometown: Taylorsville, North Carolina
Transporter Co-Driver: Wayne Smith
Hometown: Melbourne, Australia
Sources: Dakota Hunter/True Speed Communication on behalf of Stewart-Haas Racing