TRACK: Daytona International Speedway
RACE: Wawa 250 (100 laps / 250 miles)
DATE: Friday, August 27, 2021
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN
RADIO: 7 p.m. ET on MRN Radio Network and SiriusXM Ch. 90

Quotes:

Michael Annett: "It's always good to go back to Daytona, and I feel pretty good this week. Big thank-you to Josh Berry and Chase Elliott for stepping in during my recovery, and I can't wait to get back in the car this weekend. We are in the thick of the battle for the playoffs, and these four races are extremely important in getting this No. 1 Pilot Flying J Driver Appreciation Chevrolet in to battle for a series championship."

Justin Allgaier: "Daytona is one of those places where anything can happen. One minute you could be leading, and the next you could be outside the top 10. It's a place where you definitely need to be on your toes. Hopefully, our luck can turn around there and we can have a really solid night with our BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet. I know that Jason (Burdett, crew chief) will give me a car that is capable of contending for the win and if we can just be smart and avoid any trouble out there, I feel like we will have a great chance to get back to Victory Lane."

Sam Mayer: "I'm really looking forward to racing at Daytona this weekend in the PeopleReady Trueblue No. 8. I've raced on the road course here a few times but this is my first attempt at the oval and I can't wait. JRM always has fast cars, especially at superspeedways, so that helps give our team confidence going into this weekend."

Noah Gragson: "I got my first Xfinity Series win at Daytona last season and nothing would be better than to get the Bass Pro Shops/TrueTimber/Black Rifle Coffee Camaro back into Victory Lane at such a historic track. Dave (Elenz, crew chief) and this entire No. 9 team bring really strong cars to plate tracks so there's a lot to look forward to this weekend."

Notes:

• Michael Annett's No. 1 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet will carry a special paint scheme this weekend to kick off Pilot Flying J's Driver Appreciation Month program. The scheme, which features yellow stripes around the bottom of the car and on the decklid, will be on the car for the next five races, ending at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

• In two of his last three starts at Daytona, Annett has finished seventh and 11th on the 2.5-mile tri-oval.

• Justin Allgaier will make his 22nd start at “The World Center of Racing” on Friday night.

• In 21 previous starts, Allgaier has netted a best finish of second (twice), coming in this event in 2016 and in the season-opening event in 2019. 

• Overall, in 33 career NXS starts at Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway, Allgaier has scored a combined seven top fives and 14 top 10s. The pair of second-place finishes at Daytona are his best.

• With four races remaining in the regular season, Allgaier sits solidly third in both the championship standings and the projected playoff grid.

• Sam Mayer will make his first NXS start at Daytona this weekend in the blue and orange No. 8 PeopleReady Trueblue Chevrolet.

• The 18-year-old Mayer will make his first-career start on a superspeedway track within NASCAR's top three series.

• In four oval races to date in the NXS, Mayer has one top 10, coming at Atlanta Motor Speedway where he raced to a ninth-place finish.

• To date this season, the No. 8 team has accumulated one win (Martinsville Speedway), four top fives and nine top 10s while pacing the field for 151 laps.

• After finishing third last weekend at Michigan, Noah Gragson enters the weekend on a roll. The Las Vegas native has earned top-10 finishes in eight of his last nine starts, four of which were top-five efforts.

• The hot streak for Gragson has shown up in the points as well, as the 22-year-old is now seventh in points with just four races remaining until the NXS Playoffs.

• Gragson's first NXS victory came on Daytona's 2.5-mile high banks in the 2020 season opener. He led 13 of the final 15 laps, including the last two, to become an NXS winner.