DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – After a month break, the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will return to action Saturday at Arizona’s Tucson Speedway for the NAPA Auto Parts WildCat 150. Below is a look at the performance of the series and selected drivers.
NAPA Auto Parts WildCat 150 Race Setup:
• Todd Gilliland enters the weekend leading the K&N Pro Series West standings with 95 points after winning the first two races of the season at California’s Irwindale Speedway and Kern County Raceway Park in Bakersfield.
• Defending race winner Noah Gragson will look to earn his first win of the 2016 season and become the series’ first back-to-back winner at the .375-mile Arizona oval.
• If Gragson wins, he will tie Ron Hornaday Jr. for most series wins at Tucson, with two victories.
• Nine drivers from last year’s NAPA Auto Parts WildCat 150 will be returning this year.
• This will be the series’ second trip to the track since March 10, 2001, after making its return last season.
At Tucson Speedway:
History
• Tucson Speedway was built in 1968 and the surface was originally clay.
• Was named Raven Speedway from 1968-93 and then Tucson Raceway Park from 1993-2010.
• The track was closed in 2010 and was re-opened in 2013 at Tucson Speedway.
• Tucson re-joined the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series in 2014.
Notebook:
• This is the series’ 13th event at Tucson and the second since 2001.
• The NAPA Auto Parts WildCat 150 will air on NBCSN Thursday, May 12 at 6 p.m. ET.
• Twelve different drivers, led by Ron Hornaday Jr. with two victories, have won at Tucson.
• Eight different drivers, led by Butch Gilliland with five, have earned the pole award at the track.
• The most cautions for a K&N Pro Series West race is nine and occurred in June 1993 and January 1995, while the fewest cautions is three in 2001.
• The most caution laps for a race is 51 in November 1994 and January 1995, while the fewest is 25 in January 1996 and March 2001.
• The lead has changed hands an average of 5.07 times with a high of 10 in January 199 and May 2015.
Tucson Data:
Race: #3 of 14 overall
Race Data: Saturday, May 7 at 8:30 p.m. MT
Track Layout: .375-mile paved oval
Race Length: 150 Laps (56.25 miles)
Banking/Corners: Variable banking (eight to 12 degrees)
Tucson Qualifying/Race Data:
2015 Race Winner: Noah Gragson
2015 Pole Sitter: Ron Norman
1-Lap Qualifying Record: Butch Gilliland, Chevrolet, 15.284 seconds (88.328 mph), June 15, 1996.
150-Lap Race Record: Noah Gragson, Ford, 1 hour and 5 seconds (58.419 mph), May 2, 2015
200-Lap Race Record: Johnny Borneman, Ford, 1 hour 24 minutes and 50 seconds (66.386), March 10, 2001.
Tucson Speedway Leaders:
Wins
Ron Hornaday Jr. … 2
Johnny Borneman … 1
Mike Chase … 1
Gary Collins … 1
Butch Gilliland … 1
Doug George … 1
Noah Gragson … 1
Mark Krogh … 1
Bill Sedgwick … 1
Gary Smith … 1
Dirk Stephens … 1
Sean Woodside … 1
Poles
Butch Gilliland … 5
Ron Hornaday Jr. … 2
John Baker … 1
Jerry Cain … 1
Gary Collins … 1
Ron Norman … 1
Jason Small … 1
Gary Smith … 1
Laps Completed
Butch Gilliland … 1725
Scott Gaylord … 1395
Wayne Jacks … 1379
Bill McAnally … 1362
Laps Led
Ron Hornaday Jr. … 383
Butch Gilliland … 361
Mike Chase … 215
Gary Smith … 200
Selected Driver Highlights:
Chris Eggleston (No. 50 NAPA Filters Toyota)
• Is third in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West standings with two top-five finishes.
• In his Tucson Speedway debut last season, he finished ninth after starting third.
• He lead a total of 13 laps in last year’s NAPA Auto Parts WildCat 150.
Todd Gilliland (No. 16 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota)
• Leads the K&N Pro Series West standings with two wins.
• Is currently on a three-race win streak. He won the series’ finale at Arizona’s Phoenix International Raceway and then won the first two races of this year at Irwindale and Kern County.
• This is be his series debut at Tucson.
Noah Gragson (No. 7 AlertID/Speed Vegas/Colliers International Ford)
• Heads into Tucson sixth in the standings with one top five and two top 10s.
• He earned his first K&N Pro Series West victory at Tucson last season after starting 18th.
• En route to his victory last year, he led 23 laps.
Riley Herbst (No. 19 NAPA Batteries Toyota)
• Is fourth in the series standings with one top five and two top 10s.
• Earned his best K&N Pro Series West finish (third) the last time out at Kern.
• This will be his first series’ start at Tucson.
Julia Landauer (No. 54 Toyota Racing Toyota)
• Heads into the weekend eighth in the standings with two top 10 finishes.
• Recorded her best series finish to date, eighth, in her debut at the Irwindale opener.
• This will be her first K&N Pro Series West start at Tucson.
Ron Norman (No. 30 Port of Tucson Ford)
• Is 10th in the K&N Pro Series West standings.
• Earned his first series Coors Light Pole Award at Tucson last year before finishing 12th.
• Was won nine Super Late Model titles – four under the NASCAR banner – at Tucson.
Ryan Partridge (No. 9 Sunrise Ford/Eibach Springs/Lucas Oil Ford)
• Heads into the weekend runner-up in the standings with two top-five finishes.
• Finished fourth in last year’s NAPA Auto Parts WildCat 150 after starting 11th.
• He led 87 laps at last year’s race at Tucson.
Gracin Raz (No. 27 Montana Tech Ford)
• Is currently ninth in the K&N Pro West standings with one top-10 finish.
• He finished runner-up to his teammate Gragson last year at Tucson after starting seventh.
Cole Rouse (No. 6 Sunrise Ford/Eibach Springs/Lucas Oil Ford)
• Is ranked fifth in the series standings with one top five and two top 10 finishes.
• Collected his best series finish, fourth, to date in his second start at Kern.
• This will be his first K&N Pro West start at Tucson.
John Wood (No. 06 Holleran’s Performance/Wax 4 Dads Chevrolet)
• Is 11th in the K&N Pro West standings.
• Has best finish of 13th this season at Kern .
• Finished 17th at Tucson last season.
Other Driver Notes:
• Matt Levin will look to build upon his 11th place finish at Tucson Speedway last year. Levin has prior experience at the track: He finished second in its Super Late Model division in 2014.
• Rich DeLong III will look bounce back from his rocky start of the season and improve from his 20th place finish at the .375-mile Arizona oval last season.
Up To Speed:
• The 2016 season is the 63rd for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West.
• The 2016 schedule features 14 races at 13 different tracks across eight states.
• Third-generation driver Todd Gilliland won the season opener at California’s Irwindale Speedway on March 19th after leading a total of 33 laps.
• Gilliland expanded his win streak to three after winning the second race of the season at California’s Kern County Raceway Park.
