Kyle Larson Wins Slack Auto Parts 150 at Gresham Motorsports Park

CONCORD, NC (June 10, 2012) Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 6 Rev Racing and L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting, Inc. Toyota Camry, takes home his first win in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Saturday night in the Slack Auto Parts 150 at Gresham Motorsports Park. In what started off as a difficult night for Rev Racing, this 19-year-old driver proved that nothing could stop him from picking up the checkered flag. Starting the caution filled race in the 4th position, Larson fell back to sixth during the first of eight caution flags and held this position until fighting back to the top three by lap 40. While fighting his way to the top, Larson slipped back in the field after his Rev Racing teammate, Bryan Ortiz, blew a right front tire on the No. 4 Toyota Racing Development Camry, on lap 76, collecting the No. 2 Universal Technical Institute/NASCAR Technical Institute Toyota Camry of fellow teammate, Ryan Gifford, which lead to the first red flag of the race. Returning to green flag racing after this first of three red flag situations, Larson continued to climb and was contending for the win when the last of his Rev Racing teammates, Jorge Arteaga, was involved in an accident on the backstretch, on lap 125, ending his night. More determined than ever to claim a victory for Rev Racing, Larson, continued to battle race leader and pole winner, Cale Conley, for the win when the red flag flew for the final time on lap 142. Facing another restart with only eight laps remaining in the race, Larson thought he would see his dream diminish before making the ‘move of the race’, on lap 145, resulting in both the lead as well as the race win. “I am glad that I can bring a win home for Rev Racing as well as my sponsors, Toyota and L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting, Inc.,” said Larson. “I wasn’t sure that my team and I would have enough time to pull off this win, but we got a good restart on lap 145, I beat Conley into turn one and was able to hold him off.” After this win, 2012 Rookie of the Year contender, Larson, has moved within three points of NASCAR K&N Pro Series East points leader Chase Elliott. Larson and his fellow Rev Racing drivers will make their return to the track in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Visit Hampton, VA 175, at Langley Speedway, in Hampton, VA, on Saturday, June 23.

Darrell Wallace Jr Aims to Add to Historic Season

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (August 24, 2010) – While most drivers competing in Saturday’s American Fence Association 150 NASCAR K&N Series East race will be focused only on the fast half-mile Gresham Motorsports Park, championship-contender Darrell Wallace Jr. will be sitting in a classroom at Northwest Cabarrus High School in Concord, N.C. starting his senior year. The 16-year-old Revolution Racing driver is only 33 points behind defending NASCAR K&N Series East champion Ryan Truex, but he won’t be able to fully focus on the task until Friday afternoon when school lets out. “We start school Wednesday and maybe it will keep my mind off of the pressure of trying to run down Truex for the points lead,” Wallace said.  “This has been a great season so far but to be honest it hasn’t been easy.  We have had a few minor things go wrong that have caused us to start at the rear of the field three different times, but we’ve managed to get through traffic and end up with good results.  I hope we can have a clean race at Gresham and then in the last two races at New Hampshire and Dover so that we can give Truex a good challenge.  Even if he has trouble there are two Joe Gibbs Racing cars and the Red Bull car right behind us.  Whoever wins the championship will be the team that makes the fewest mistakes.” Wallace made history in the first race of the season when he became the NASCAR K&N Series youngest and first African American to win a race.  That win at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in March has propelled him to two wins, five top-fives and six top-10s in only seven starts.  He leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year competition over Cole Whitt, Kevin Swindell and teammate Ryan Gifford. Wallace will be joined at the Jefferson, Ga. speedway by teammates and fellow Drive for Diversity program members Gifford, Sergio Pena and Michael Cherry, who will be making his series debut. Gifford, who has fallen to eighth in series standings, 221 points behind Truex, is looking at wins as the salvation of his season. “We have been beaten around quite a bit in the last two races and have lost a lot of points,” Gifford said.  “We’re all going to Gresham for the first time and I’ve had success at both New Hampshire and Dover, so we’ll be looking to score wins rather than race for points.  We’ve been fast enough to win every week and haven’t been able to make it work yet.  We’ll get one before the season is over.” Gifford, 21, from Winchester, Tenn. became the first African American to win a pole in series history Martinsville Speedway June 6. Sergio Pena, who like Wallace is also splitting time between his senior year in high school and the race track, will look to turn his season around and improve upon his 12th-place point’s position.  Pena’s best finish of the season is 10th at Lime Rock Park, but his consistency has allowed him to maintain a shot at the top 10 in season-ending points.  He is currently 86 points out of the top 10. “We have to run better in our last three races and I’m confident we can get to the top 10,” said the 17-year-old Pena.  “I have learned a lot this season and know that we’ll use that experience in the final three races.  Our goal has gone from a championship to finishing the season strong and earning a spot on stage at the banquet.” Michael Cherry, from Valrico, Fla. and a season-long member of Revolution Racing’s Whelen All-American Series program, has earned an opportunity in one of the team’s NASCAR K&N Series cars.  He will be making his series debut many strong runs in the Whelen All-American Series, including becoming the first African American driver to win a race at Tri-County Motor Speedway in Hudson, N.C. The American Fence Association 150 NASCAR K&N Series East race at Gresham Motorsports Park starts at 8:30 p.m.  Practice starts Saturday morning at 11 a.m. and qualifying is scheduled for 4 p.m.  The race will be broadcast on Speed Channel September 2 at 6 p.m. EDT.

Barriers fall as Darrell Wallace Jr. wins in NASCAR’s East tour (USAToday)

Darrell Wallace Jr. discovered Saturday night that celebrating his first NASCAR victory differed greatly from how he envisioned it. Don’t even bother asking him to digest the historical aspect of his victory in the Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 150, where Wallace became the NASCAR K&N East Series’ first African-American winner and its youngest victor at 16 years, five months and 19 days. Wallace’s win topped Brett Moffitt (16 years, 9 months, 27 days), who won at South Boston (Va.) Speedway last season. “It hasn’t hit me, but soon it will,” said Wallace, a member of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program. “It was a pretty crazy night. It was mainly saving tires, that’s what they were telling me in my ear all night. That’s what I did and I was able to come up with the win.” Wallace started seventh at Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway in his series debut and led three times for 22 laps, gaining his final lead after passing Cole Whitt just after the last restart. Next were fellow rookie Andrew Smith, Jody Lavender, Whitt and Ryan Gifford, one of Wallace’s three D4D teammates at Revolution Racing. Read the rest on USAToday