Kraus, Howard Ready For Road Race At COTA
• NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Returns To Texas
ROSEVILLE, Calif. (March 22, 2022) – The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will be turning left and right this week with a visit to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas on Saturday for the XPEL 225, the first of three road course events on this year’s schedule.
McAnally-Hilgemann Racing drivers, Derek Kraus and Colby Howard, are both familiar with the layout of the 3.42-mile track.
They competed in the inaugural NASCAR weekend of racing there last year, with Kraus racing in the Camping World Truck Series event and Howard competing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race. The No. 19 Chevrolet Silverado RST driven by Kraus proudly carries the NAPA colors, with BBB/NAPA Power Premium Plus serving as the primary sponsor at COTA. Howard drives the No. 91 Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet Silverado RST.
Both drivers have high ambitions for Saturday’s Camping World Truck Series event. Kraus is coming off a top-10 finish at Atlanta and aims to build on that momentum with a strong performance at the state-of-the-art Texas road course. Howard will also be on the charge as he aims to gain ground on the competition and sees this event as an opportunity to make up some points.
MHR is working with Bryon Gonzales, BBB Industries Director of National Sales, and Tim Wilks, NAPA District Manager in Austin, in preparing an exciting sponsor activation at the Texas event. MHR team members will meet at the NAPA Round Rock store in advance of the race and head out to visit Rush Automotive and Dave’s Ultimate Automotive.
A special group of guests will be treated to a VIP Experience at the track. They will tour the team hauler, have access to pit road and be on the starting grid with the team during pre-race ceremonies. Special VIPs in attendance will be James Fraser, who served 10 tours of duty in Iraq, and Dr. Joseph Meiring.
Practice/Qualifying
The format for practice and qualifying at COTA on Friday will involve a 20-minute warm-up/practice session – followed by qualifying, featuring two groups, each in a 15-minute timed session. The top five of each group will transfer to a final round, competing in a 10-minute session.
Quote – Derek Kraus
“I will be using the simulator a lot as a tool for preparation. I’m looking forward to carrying the momentum that we have from Atlanta into COTA.”
Quote – Colby Howard
“Road courses are not a big strength of mine, but I’m actually looking forward to this race. I think it will be a great race to make up some points and get some momentum going. I wouldn’t mind a little rain either.”
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Event:
Race: XPEL 225 (42 Laps) (Race 4 of 23) March 26, 2022
Location: Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas (3.42-mile road course)
Television: FS1 on March 26 at 1 p.m. ET
Derek Kraus
No. 19 BBB/NAPA Power Premium Plus Chevrolet Silverado RST
Age: 20
Hometown: Stratford, Wis.
Career series stats: 53 starts, 2 poles, 4 top fives, 20 top 10s
Most recent series finish: 9th – Atlanta (3/19/22)
Best career series finish: 2nd – Darlington (9/6/20)
COTA stats: 1 series start (Best finish – 21st on 5/22/21)
2022 series stats:
Races: 3 starts
Laps completed: 370/375
Laps led: 1
Series standings: 15th
Colby Howard
No. 91 Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet Silverado RST
Age: 20
Hometown: Simpsonville, S.C.
Career series stats: 8 starts
Most recent series finish: 26th – Atlanta (3/19/22)
Best career series finish: 13th – Darlington (9/5/21)
COTA stats: First COTA start in series
2022 series stats:
Races: 3 starts
Laps completed: 262/375
Laps led: 9
Series standings: 34th