GRANT ENFINGER – 2017 MICHIGAN PREVIEW
Grant Enfinger, No. 98 Champion Power Equipment Toyota Tundra
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Michigan International Speedway – LTi Printing 200
Race No. 13 of 23
Team Information:
Driver Point Standings: 8th
Owner Point Standings: 10th
Sunoco Rookie of the Year Contender
2017 Stage Wins: 0
2017 Stage Bonus Points: 57
2017 Playoff Points: 0
Sounding Off – Grant Enfinger:
Do you think the added seat time from your five ARCA Racing Series starts, combined with your NCWTS start in 2016, will be an advantage over the other rookies in the field on Saturday?
“At most tracks, I feel like seat time in the ARCA Series has helped me get a feel of the track, even though the cars drive a good bit differently than the trucks. Michigan however, is it’s on style of truck race. I don’t think the ARCA laps will help, but my experience racing the truck last year will definitely be a benefit. Michigan is in between a super speedway track, and an intermediate track for the Truck Series. We use the draft a lot, but you still need a good handling truck to be able to drive around other trucks. I finished eighth at MIS last year, and learned a lot. Jeff (Hensley, crew chief) has run really well there, and he won this race a few years ago with (Johnny) Sauter, so we are looking forward to this one. I’m happy to have Champion Power Equipment back on board again for the next two races, and look for solid runs as we head into the Playoffs.”
News & Notes:
• Chassis Chatter... The No. 98 ThorSport Racing (TSR) team will unload chassis No. 52 for Saturday’s LTi Printing 200 at Michigan International Speedway (MIS). This is the same chassis Grant Enfinger piloted to a fourth-place finish at Iowa Speedway, and a third-place finish at Dover International Speedway, earlier this season.
• Michigan Minute… Enfinger has six starts at MIS since 2010. Included in those six starts are five ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards starts (2010-2015), and one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) start (2016). In his lone NCWTS start at the 2.0-mile D-shaped oval, Enfinger started 9th, completed 100 percent of the scheduled laps, and finished eighth.
• Playoff Status… Enfinger has four races remaining on the 2017 NCWTS schedule to lock his No. 98 Champion Power Equipment Toyota Tundra into the first round of the Playoffs, which kicks-off at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September. With the top-8 drivers moving on, the ThorSport Racing driver is currently on the outside looking in, by a mere four points. Enfinger is currently 8th in the NCWTS driver point standings, but seeded ninth in the Playoff standings entering the 13th race on the 2017 NCWTS schedule.
• Rookie Stripe: Enfinger is currently second in the 2017 Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings, a mere nine points behind leader Chase Briscoe, after 12 of 23 races this season.
• Race Rewind – Pocono…. In his track debut at Pocono Raceway in the NCWTS, the ThorSport Racing driver started 12th, finished ninth in Stage 1, 17th in Stage 2, and 13th in the Overton’s 150, due to a left-rear tire issue late in the 60-lap event.
• Catch Grant at Michigan...Enfinger, and ThorSport Racing teammate Cody Coughlin, will be at the RIDE TV display in the MIS Fan Zone on Friday, August 11 from 4:45-5:15 p.m.
Enfinger’s Michigan ARCA Stats:
• Starts: 5, since 2010
• Laps Completed: 451 of 500 (90.2%)
• Laps Led: 46
• Best Start: 6th (2015)
• Best Finish: 5th (2013)
• Top-5 Finishes: 1
• Top-10 Finishes: 3
• Average Start: 10.6
• Average Finish: 14.0
Enfinger’s 2017 NCWTS Stats:
• Starts: 12
• Wins: 0
• Poles: 0
• Laps Completed: 1758 of 1868 (94.1%)
• Laps Led: 23
• Top-5 Finishes: 5
• Top-10 Finishes: 7
• Average Start: 11.4
• Average Finish: 9.9
Enfinger’s Career NCWTS stats:
• Starts: 26, since 2010
• First Start: Talladega (2010)
• First Full-time Season: 2017
• Poles: 1 (Daytona, 2016)
• Wins: 1 (Talladega, 2016)
• Top-5 Finishes: 7
• Top-10 Finishes: 12
• Laps Completed: 3,413
• Laps Led: 73
• Avg. Start: 12.2
• Avg. Finish: 12.2
Michigan Stages:
• Stage 1 – 30 laps (concludes at lap 30)
• Stage 2 – 30 laps (concludes at lap 60)
• Stage 3 – 40 laps (concludes at lap 100)
Broadcast Schedule – Michigan:
LTI Printing 200: Saturday, August 12 at 1 p.m. ET on FS1, SiriusXM, MRN
Keystone Light Pole Qualifying: Saturday, August 12 at 9:30 a.m. ET on FS1, SiriusXM, MRN
Race Information:
Date: Saturday, August 12. 2017
Time: 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX and MRN
Track: 2-mile D-shaped oval
Distance: 100 Laps, 2000 miles
Social: @MISpeedway #LTI200
About Champion Power Equipment:
Since 2003 Champion Power Equipment has earned a reputation for designing and producing the market’s finest power equipment. From our original headquarters in Santa Fe Springs, California Champion has expanded its North American footprint to include facilities in Jackson Tennessee, Milwaukee Wisconsin and Toronto Canada. Today Champion’s product line has expanded to include portable generators, home standby generators, inverter generators, engines, winches and log splitters. With over 2.5 million generators sold in North America, Champion is a market leader in the power equipment field. For more information visit:ChampionPowerEquipment.com.
About Curb Records:
Celebrating over 50 years in the entertainment business, Curb Records is one of the world’s leading independent music companies. Owned and operated under The Curb Group by Mike Curb since 1962, Curb Records has achieved 433 number one records, over 1,500 hundred Top Ten records and charted over 4,500 total records. Today’s roster includes some of the top names in Country, Christian and Pop/Rock music. Curb Records has produced over 100 Billboard awards and achievements and was recently honored as the 2015 Mediabase Gold Label of The Year. For more information visit: Curb.com.
About ThorSport Racing:
ThorSport Racing, based in Sandusky, Ohio, is the longest-tenured NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team. ThorSport Racing, which has competed in the NCWTS since 1996, will run the No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra driven by two-time NCWTS drivers’ champion Matt Crafton, the No. 13 JEGS/RIDE TV Toyota Tundra driven by Cody Coughlin, the No. 27 Toyota Tundra driven by Ben Rhodes, and the No. 98 RIDE TV/Champion Power Equipment/Jive Communications/Curb Records Toyota Tundra driven by Grant Enfinger. For more information visit www.ThorSport.com.
Edgehill Management Group
Jessica O’Brien
Public Relations, ThorSport Racing
Jessica@EdgehillManagement.com
Mobile: (803) 240-5807
