Analyzing The Mobile 150 At Mobile International Speedway
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will head to Alabama on Saturday for the Mobile 150 presented by the Mobile Sports Authority, the inaugural series race at Mobile International Speedway. Below is a statistical look at the performance of the series and selected drivers.
Mobile 150 Race Setup:
• Of the 25 cars scheduled to compete in Saturday’s Mobile 150, only three drivers have previous experience at the half-mile oval – Kyle Benjamin, Harrison Burton and Sarah Cornett-Ching.
• Of the entered cars, only six have taken a K&N car to Victory Lane, five in the K&N East and one in the West. They include: Dillon Bassett (East), Kyle Benjamin (East), Collin Cabre (East), Brandon Gdovic (East), Noah Gragson (West) and Jesse Little (East).
• First place in the series standings and the victory will be up for grabs. New Smyrna victor and current points leader, Todd Gilliland, will not be making the trip to Alabama.
At Mobile Speedway:
History
• Mobile International Speedway opened its doors in 1965 and hosted open-wheel racing from 1966-68.
• It held numerous NASCAR series throughout the 1980s, 90s and early 2000s, including the NASCAR Grand American Series, NASCAR All-American Challenge Series, NASCAR Pro Stock Car Series and NASCAR Southeast Series.
• The Alabama track also hosted ARCA events since 2012.
Mobile Data
Race: #2 of 14 overall
Track Layout: .5-mile paved oval
Banking/Turns: Turns 1 & 2 11.5 degrees, Turns 3 & 4 12 degrees.
Race Length: 150 Laps (75 miles)
Qualifying/Race Data
2015 Pole/Race Winner: Inaugural event
Selected Driver Highlights:
Ronnie Bassett Jr. (No. 04 Bassett Gutters Ford)
• Finished third in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East opener at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway.
• Ended last season ranked 15th in the series standings with one win, two top fives and four top 10s.
• Collected his best series finishes, second, at Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway in 2014 and Iowa Speedway last season.
Kyle Benjamin (No 40 Ranier Racing with MDM Chevrolet)
• Finished fourth in the season opener at New Smyrna.
• Finished ninth in the series standings last season with one win, three top-five and six top-10 finishes.
• Earned his first K&N East victory at another half-mile oval, Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
• Competed in two ARCA races at Mobile in 2013 and 2014 and finished second in both events.
• Is a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class.
Harrison Burton (No 12. DEX Imaging/Konica Minolta Toyota)
• Finished 13th in his K&N East debut at New Smyrna.
• Became the youngest starter in NASCAR K&N Pro Series West history at 15 years, eight days at All American Speedway in Roseville, California.
• Made two K&N West starts in 2015: All American (11th) and Arizona’s Phoenix International Raceway (6th).
• Has previous experience at Mobile, he won a Southern Super Series race at the Alabama track last season.
Collin Cabre (No. 2 UTI/NTI Toyota)
• Finished 11th at the K&N East opener on Feb. 14.
• Finished 10h in the series standings last year with one win, two top-five and three top-10 finishes.
• Captured his first win at Dover (Delaware) International Speedway at the 2015 finale.
Spencer Davis (No. 41 Ruud.com Chevrolet)
• Finished runner-up at New Smyrna season opener.
• Competed in four K&N East races last year and earned three top fives and four top 10s.
• Runner-up finishes at Iowa (2015) and New Smyrna are his best career results in the series.
Tyler Dippel (No. 38 East West Marine/TyCar Chevrolet)
• Finished eighth in his K&N East debut at .488-mile New Smyrna.
• In an ARCA race at Indiana’s Salem Speedway, a .555-mile paved oval, he finished fourth.
Noah Gragson (No. 55 AlertID Ford)
• Finished sixth at the K&N East season opener at New Smyrna.
• In his two K&N East starts last season, he finished eighth at New York’s Watkins Glen International and 10th at Richmond (Virginia) International Raceway.
• Finished runner-up in the K&N West last year with two wins, seven top-five and 11 top-10 finishes.
• Was the 2015 Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the K&N West.
Kaz Grala (No. 3 NETTTS Toyota)
• Finished 15th in the K&N East season opener at New Smyrna.
• He finished seventh in the series standings last year with four top fives and nine top 10s.
• He collected his best career finishes, second, at Dover (2014) and VIRginia International Raceway (2015).
Justin Haley (No. 5 Braun Auto Chevrolet)
• Finished fifth at the series opener at New Smyrna.
• Finished sixth in the K&N East standings last year with six top fives and 10 top 10s.
• Won the 21 Means 21 Pole Award and led 94 of 101 laps before a flat tire took him out of the contention at the K&N West finale at Phoenix.
Trey Hutchens III (No. 14 Hutchens Motorsports Chevrolet)
• Finished 14th at the series opener at New Smyrna.
• Started six K&N East races last season and earned two top-10 finishes.
Dominique Van Wieringen (No. 30 Durobyte Ford)
• Finished 10th in her K&N East debut at New Smyrna.
• Crossed the finish line third in her CARS Super Late Model Tour start at the half-mile Concord (North Carolina) Speedway last season.
Other Driver Notes:
• Dillon Bassett Jr. is looking to overcome his 27th place finish at the New Smyrna opener this weekend at Mobile. He finished last season with one win, two top fives and four top 10s.
• Sarah Cornett-Ching is coming off a 22nd place finish at New Smyrna. She’s hoping her experience at Mobile can help her bounce back, she finished 14th at the track in an ARCA race last year.
• Ruben Garcia Jr. the 2015 NASCAR Mexico Series champion finished 21st in his series debut at New Smyrna and his looking to improve at Mobile.
• Austin Theriault finished 24th at the series opener and his aiming to recover in his inaugural showing in Alabama this weekend.
Up To Speed:
• The 2016 season is the 30th for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
• The 2016 schedule features 14 races at 13 different tracks across the United States.
• Third generation driver, Todd Gilliland, earned his first NASCAR K&N Pro Series East in his series debut at the 2016 opener at New Smyrna.
