Race 24: Bristol
No. 8 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Bristol Motor Speedway
Daniel Hemric will be making his second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway and first in the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race. The Kannapolis, North Carolina, native was turned into the outside wall during his first Cup Series start at Bristol in April. He also has four previous NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the half-mile track, earning two top-five and three top-10 finishes.
Quote:
What was your biggest takeaway from your first Cup start at Bristol Motor Speedway, despite being caught up in someone else's incident?
"We're definitely not bringing the package we had in the Spring race for this weekend's Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race. As a company, once we got through the first Bristol race in April - myself, Austin Dillon, our affiliate teammates Ty Dillon and Bubba Wallace - we sat in our competition meetings and determined we needed to fundamentally go in a different direction at the high-banked, high-speed tracks like Bristol and Dover. Our best race car was able to run 14th to 16th, and that is where we were running when we got crashed by a lapped car in April. That's not going to cut it. You have to be better than that. Especially when it is a track that you and everyone on your team feels you should have success at. With that being said, we know it is not easy and you have to work for it. We will show up this weekend with a fundamentally different package on the Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet and we have been working ever since we left that racetrack in April to change those fundamentals, so I am eager to get there and see what we have come up with."
What does it mean to not only be a part of your first Bristol night race, but to have Bass Pro Shops on the car for Saturday night's event?
"One of my earliest memories of NASCAR racing was watching Dale Earnhardt and Terry Labonte go at it under the lights at Bristol from the foot of my father's bed. Bristol is such a special racetrack, but everything seems to be ramped up when the lights turn on for the August night race. Bass Pro Shops has been an amazing partner to RCR over the years, and it is an honor to have them on our No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for this weekend's race. I know the scheme will look great under the lights and hopefully we can give them a strong performance once the green flag flies.
Meet the Driver
Hemric is scheduled to be at the Bass Pro Shops in Bristol, Tennessee with fellow RCR driver Austin Dillon starting at 7 p.m. local time on Thursday, August 15. He is also scheduled to sign autographs at the RCR merchandise hauler in the Bristol Motor Speedway midway on Friday, August 16, starting at 3 p.m. local time.
About Bass Pro Shops
Bass Pro Shops is North America's premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father's liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops acquired Cabela's to create a "best-of-the-best" experience with superior products, dynamic locations and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America's Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as "one of America's Best Employers." Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit http://www.basspro.com/.