TRACK – Rockingham Speedway (1.017-mile oval)
NOAPS RACE – North Carolina Education Lottery 250 Presented by Black’s Tire (250 laps / 235 miles)
TUNE IN – CW, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90 at 2:30 p.m. (ET)
- Carson Kvapil will make his second career start at Rockingham Speedway this weekend in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
- During the 2025 race at “The Rock,” the JR Motorsports driver led 47 laps and was running up front before being collected in a late-race incident.
- On tracks measuring 1-2 miles in length, Kvapil has 25 starts with six top-fives and nine top-10’s.
- Arby’s returns to the No. 1 for its second primary race of the season.
- Justin Allgaier heads to Rockingham this weekend as a winner in three of the last four NOAPS races, including the last two at Darlington Raceway and last weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
- With last weekend’s victory at Martinsville, Allgaier moves into a tie for sixth on the NOAPS all-time wins list and a tie for most wins by a series regular in history with NASCAR Hall of Famer Jack Ingram.
- Additionally, Allgaier extended his lead in the NOAPS championship standings to 92 points through the opening seven events of the season.
- In one previous NOAPS start at Rockingham, Allgaier started eighth and ran inside the top 10 for much of the day before being collected in a late-race incident, leading to a 21st-place finish.
- Sammy Smith heads to Rockingham this Saturday as the defending winner of this event. Smith started 13th and led for nine laps en route to the victory.
- On tracks measuring 1-2 miles in length, Smith has made 52 starts with the NOAPS and tallied two wins, nine top-fives and 26 top-10s.
- According to NASCAR’s loop data statistics, Smith is ranked second among the field for most laps run inside the top-15 at 87.9 percent.
- The No. 8 will carry a new paint scheme with TruckClub, a commercial-truck warranty provider on a mission to empower commercial carriers with the tools, resources, and coverage to protect their livelihood and ensure their business thrives.
- Rajah Caruth returns to the No. 88 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet this weekend at Rockingham for the fifth time this season.
- Through seven starts in 2026, Caruth has scored three top-10s, with a best finish of eighth coming at both Atlanta Motor Speedway and Phoenix Raceway.
- In Caruth’s NASCAR O’Reilly Series career on tracks between 1-2 miles in length, the young driver has earned two top-10s.
- Caruth has one NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series start at Rockingham, earning a strong fourth-place finish.
Carson Kvapil: “Rockingham is a unique track and presents a huge challenge but we showed strong speed here during our January test so I feel confident. JR Motorsports has had really strong cars this entire season and I know that Rodney (Childers, crew chief) will give me another great Arby’s Chevrolet this weekend.”
Justin Allgaier: “Rockingham is such a fun and unique type of track. We had a strong car there last year, but just got caught up in a wreck there toward the end. I know that Andrew (Overstreet, crew chief) and everyone on this Jarrett team will build off of that notebook from last year and give me a car that is just as strong as what we’ve had all season to this point. Hopefully we can have a smooth day and keep this momentum in our favor.”
Sammy Smith: “I’m looking forward to Rockingham this weekend to defend our win last year. This No. 8 team has been consistently good this year, we’ve been up front and so close several times to another victory. The competition will be tough with not only a race win on the line but also qualifying to be in the Dash 4 Cash at Bristol. I know we’ll have a strong TruckClub Chevrolet capable of doing both.”
Rajah Caruth: “Rockingham is a really cool place with a lot of history, and even with the newer surface, it still presents its own challenges as the run goes on. I’m glad we were able to test there earlier this year because it gave us a good feel for how the track changes and what we need out of the car. I’m looking forward to getting back with Mardy (Lindley, crew chief) and the No. 88 team this weekend and seeing how we stack up. Hopefully we can execute a clean race and be there at the end for HendrickCars.com and everyone at JR Motorsports.”
JRM Team Updates
- JR Motorsports at Rockingham Speedway: JR Motorsports has competed at Rockingham Speedway a combined four times in the NOAPS. In those starts at the 1.017-mile oval, the organization has recorded one win, one top-five and one top-10. The average finish is 12.8.