This Weekend in NASCAR – Mid-Ohio Storylines

The NASCAR XFINITY Series is at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend; storylines follow…

Next Race: Bristol Motor Speedway, August 20

The Race: Mid-Ohio Challenge
The Place: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
The Date: Saturday, August 13
The Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: USA, 3 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 169.35 miles (75 laps)

Erik Jones The Latest On The Ladder To Move Up To Sprint Cup
Former series champions Austin Dillon (2013), Chase Elliott (2014), Chris Buescher (2015) and now 2016 Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Erik Jones are all examples of the NASCAR XFINITY Series providing an opportunity for young drivers with exceptional talent to showcase their skills and move up to the highest level in stock car racing – the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

This past weekend, Jones was named to drive the No. 77 Toyota Camry for Furniture Row Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series next season alongside teammate Martin Truex Jr.

It’s not surprising Jones was given this opportunity with how well he has driven this season. In 20 starts, he has posted six poles, three wins and a series-high 11 top fives. Jones also leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings and is the first rookie since Chase Elliott in 2014 to have a multiple-win season.

Jones is currently fourth in the standings, but will be seeded first in the inaugural NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase due to his three wins.

Keep an eye on Jones, as he will be making his series track debut in Saturday’s Mid-Ohio Challenge at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (3:30 p.m. ET on USA). Last weekend at Watkins Glen, the first road course of the season, he started 13th and finished 12th.

Mid-Ohio: The Second of Three Road Courses on the NXS Schedule
This season, the NASCAR XFINITY Series is scheduled to compete on three road courses: Watkins Glen International, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Road America. While all three have distinct attributes, Mid-Ohio takes a little from both WGI and Road America and rolls it into one.

Much like Watkins Glen with a track length of 2.45-miles, Mid-Ohio stretches 2.085-miles through the hills of Ohio.

And similarly to Road America with its 14 turns, Mid-Ohio packs in 13 turns on its very competitive multi-elevational course.

In three series races at Mid-Ohio, there have been three different winners and three different pole winners. Neither last season’s pole winner (Alex Tagliani) or race winner (Regan Smith) are entered this weekend.

Fourth New Winner Guaranteed at Mid-Ohio
In three NASCAR XFINITY Series races at Mid-Ohio there have been three different winners, and with none of the former winners entered this weekend, a fourth new winner is guaranteed.

AJ Allmendinger won the inaugural NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Mid-Ohio in 2013 driving for car owner Roger Penske. In 2014, Chris Buescher took home the victory at Mid-Ohio driving for car owner Jack Roush. And last season, Regan Smith took the lead on the final lap with an aggressive move on Alex Tagliani in the last turn to win the race driving for car owner Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Piquet, Hornish and Habul Came To Win
Three drivers who will be fun to watch on the curves of Mid-Ohio this weekend are Nelson Piquet Jr., Sam Hornish Jr., and Kenny Habul. All three are known road course ringers who have a good chance to win this weekend.

Nelson Piquet Jr., from Brasilia, Brazil, will be driving the Biagi DenBeste Racing No. 98 Ford Mustang owned by Fred Biagi and guided by crew chief Jon Hanson. This will be Piquet’s first series start since 2013. In 37 career series starts, he has posted one win (Road America), one top five and seven top 10s. Since 2013, Piquet has spent his time mastering his road racing expertise by competing in Formula E; winning two races and claiming the title in his first season (2014).

Sam Hornish Jr., a Defiance, Ohio native, has assumed the role of closing pitcher for NASCAR XFINITY Series teams who want to bring in an ace part-time with a solid chance to win. This season, he has made two starts, both at Iowa Speedway, winning the first and finishing in the top 10 in the second. His average finish this season is a 3.5. Now he rolls into Mid-Ohio with something to prove. In his last start on the Ohio road course back in 2014, he won the pole, but due to a miss-shift, blew the engine and finished 30th. He looks to redeem himself this weekend, driving the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro with veteran crew chief Gil Martin.

For the second weekend in a row, Kenny Habul will be in the JR Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro. Habul has been working with crew chief David Elenz and this past weekend at Watkins Glen the pair started 23rd and finished 17th. Habul has made three starts at Mid-Ohio, posting an average finish of 28.3.

NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase Cutoff Is Looming
Only six races are left in the NASCAR XFINITY Series regular season. With so few remaining until the Chase cutoff, each race becomes even more important to the drivers looking to secure their spots in this season’s playoffs. Currently, only Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez and Elliott Sadler have clinched a spot in the 2016 NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase, having won races and accumulated enough points to lock themselves inside the top 30 in points. That leaves nine spots up for grabs in the NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase..

Any of the top 12 drivers in the NASCAR XFINITY Series current standings could clinch a spot in the Chase with a win. Of the top 12 in points, only one has a NASCAR XFINITY Series road course win – Brendan Gaughan at Road America in 2014. Gaughan is currently sixth in points having posted two top fives and nine top 10s. He has completed 99.78% of the scheduled laps this season – tied for series-most with Elliott Sadler. Gaughan’s best series finish at Mid-Ohio was 12th last season.

Ty Dillon (67 races since last win) and Justin Allgaier (64 races since last win) are both hungry for a victory this season. Dillon is third in points on the strength of six top fives and 12 top 10s this season. Dillon led five laps last weekend at WGI and finished 11th, he finished third at Mid-Ohio last season.

Allgaier is driving for the No. 7 JR Motorsports team that Regan Smith won with at Mid-Ohio last season. He is coming off a seventh-place finish last weekend at WGI and in one career start at Mid-Ohio, finished eighth in 2013.

Dancing Along The Cut Off Line
Time is running out in the NASCAR XFINITY Series regular season and drivers hoping to make the Chase on points are facing that reality. With each finish that much more important, the pressure on the drivers teetering along the cutoff line has to be immense. Blake Koch currently holds the final Chase berth in 12th with Ross Chastain and Dakoda Armstrong looking to take his position this weekend.

In the final NASCAR XFINITY Series Chase spot in 12th-position is Blake Koch, who is currently just two points ahead of 13th-place Ross Chastain. Koch’s season has been marred with DNFs (three), but this has been the best season of his career. He’s posted two top 10s and an average finish of 19.2. Koch has made three starts at Mid-Ohio, producing a best finish of 24th last season.

With a slim deficit of two points, 13th-place Ross Chastain is waiting on any slip by Koch to capitalize. Chastain is in this position due to his consistency. In 20 starts, he has an average finish of 19.4 with just one DNF on the season. Chastain made his series debut at Mid-Ohio last season where he started 32nd and drove up to a 19th-place finish.

Chastain is not the only driver within striking distance of making the Chase. Dakoda Armstrong is 14th in the standings, just nine points behind 12th-place Koch. Armstrong has run well this season, posting one top five and an average finish of 19.6. Armstrong has made two starts at Mid-Ohio, registering a top-10 finish and an average finish of 16.5.

NASCAR XFINITY Series Etc.:

Clauson Honored With Decal – To honor the life of Bryan Clauson, NASCAR XFINITY Series teams will run decals on the cars racing at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend. The BC decal will be placed on the A-Post of all cars in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. Click here to view and download the decal.

Points Get Tight At The Top – Both current standings leader Elliott Sadler and second-place Daniel Suarez are already locked into the Chase, but are locked in a tight battle for the top spot in the standings. This past weekend Suarez closed the 19-point gap between himself and Sadler to 11 points following a fourth-place finish at Watkins Glen International. …

NASCAR in Ohio – NASCAR has hosted 26 national series races (14 NSCS, three NXS and nine NCWTS) among nine tracks in the state of Ohio. The first NASCAR national series race held in the state of Ohio was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event on May 30, 1950 at the half-mile dirt track on the Canfield Fairgrounds in Canfield, Ohio – the race was won by Bill Rexford (Oldsmobile). Dayton Speedway has held the most NASCAR national series races in the state of Ohio with six. Only two tracks are currently active in hosting NASCAR national series races – Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Eldora Speedway. Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is the only track in the state of Ohio that the NASCAR XFINITY Series has competed on. …

Ohio Drivers in NASCAR – A total of 123 drivers with their home state recorded as Ohio have made at least one start in a NASCAR national series race. Of those 123, 18 have competed in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, led by Dave Blaney – father of Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford this weekend – with 121 starts. Of the 18 Ohio drivers who have competed in the XFINITY Series, only three have won – Sam Hornish Jr (Defiance) with four wins, Tim Richmond (Ashland) with two wins and Dave Blaney (Hartford) with one win.

Former Mid-Ohio Winner Buescher Finding Success in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series – Chris Buescher showed up on everyone’s radar in 2014 when he posted his first NASCAR national series career win at Mid-Ohio. Since then, the rising star has continued to impress. On the strength of his consistency and two wins last season, Buescher won the NASCAR XFINITY Series title. His success vaulted him to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series where two weeks ago he became the first Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender to win a Sprint Cup race since Joey Logano in 2009.