Like peanut butter and jelly, or the Southern 500 and Labor Day weekend, country music and NASCAR seemingly go hand in hand. For this year’s NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) race at Darlington Raceway, Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kyle Larson will be getting a retro makeover on his No. 42 ENEOS Chevrolet Camaro based on a car driven by country music legend Marty Robbins, who also frequently ran the No. 42.
While some sing about the things they’d like to do, Robbins strapped on a helmet and did the thing he loved to do, which was race. The country singer, best known for his songs “El Paso” and “Big Iron”, competed in a total of 35 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races from 1966-1982, and also ran one race in the Grand National East Series.
Robbins was a well-respected driver among his competitors and his familiar purple and gold car was always a fan favorite when he raced at the Nashville Fairgrounds.
This weekend, ENEOS and Chip Ganassi Racing are excited to bring back Robbins’ familiar paint scheme as Darlington once again celebrates NASCAR’s history with a throwback- themed weekend.
Motoshi Sunami, President, JX Nippon Oil and Energy USA Inc.: “ENEOS may be somewhat new to NASCAR, but we are really excited to bring back Marty Robbins’ unique paint scheme on Kyle’s No. 42 car for the upcoming XFINITY race at Darlington Raceway. The story of Marty Robbins is historic in NASCAR and we’re looking forward to getting into the throwback mood this year at Darlington.”
VFW Sports Clips Help A Hero 200
Darlington Raceway, Darlington, S.C.
Sept. 3, 2016
Here’s a little hint for my @NASCAR_XFINITY throwback @TooToughToTame. #ENEOSRacing pic.twitter.com/KkCTi3zOTc
— Kyle Larson (@KyleLarsonRacin) August 25, 2016
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NOTES OF INTEREST:
- After all scheduled events were rained out on Friday, the field was set by the rule book, leaving the No. 42 ENEOS Chevy starting 13th.
- Kyle reported that the car was very tight to start the race and for most of the day.
- At lap 91 the No. 42 ENEOS Chevy took over the lead until lap 102.
- On lap 103 while coming to pit road the No. 42 spun, bringing out the caution.
- Kyle battled his way back into the top 5 finishing 4th for the VFW/Sports Clips Help a Hero 200 at Darlington Raceway
- Kyle scored his first career Top 5 at Darlington this year
Results (with starting position)
P1 – (3) Elliott Sadler, No. 1
P2 – (2) Denny Hamlin, No. 18
P3 – (5) Daniel Suarez, No. 19
P4 – (13) Kyle Larson, No. 42 ENEOS Chevrolet Camaro
“We finished fourth, but really had to fight a tight handling car all day. On the longer runs, I was pretty good, but just never felt we had the balance we needed. Fortunate that the spin coming to pit road didn’t cost us too much. Thanks to everyone for the hard work to get us ready to go today after yesterday’s rainout.”
Kyle Larson,
No. 42 ENEOS Chevrolet Camero
“We finished fourth, but really had to fight a tight handling car all day. On the longer runs, I was pretty good, but just never felt we had the balance we needed. Fortunate that the spin coming to pit road didn’t cost us too much. Thanks to everyone for the hard work to get us ready to go today after yesterday’s rainout.”Kyle Larson next races in the ENEOS No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro on September 17th at the Hisense 300, Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, IL.
| Feb 20 | Powershares 300 View Results> |
Daytona International Speedway | Daytona Beach, FL | 34th |
| Feb 27 | Heads Up Georgia 250 View Results> |
Atlanta Motor Speedway | Hampton, GA | 2nd |
| Mar 19 | Treatmyclot.com 300 View Results> |
Auto Club Speedway | Fontana, CA | 8th |
| Apr 9 | O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 View Results> |
Texas Motor Speedway | Ft Worth, TX | 11th |
| May 28 | Hisense 300 View Results> |
Charlotte Motor Speedway | Charlotte, NC | 6th |
| June 4 | Pocono Green 250* | Pocono Raceway | Long Pond, PA | 1st |
| Aug 19 | Food City 300 | Bristol Motor Speedway | Bristol, TN | 3rd |
| Sep 3 | Help a Hero 200 | Darlington Raceway | Darlington, SC | 4th |
| Sep 17 | NASCAR XFINITY Series Chicagoland Race | Chicagoland Speedway | Joliet, IL | |
| Nov 19 | Ford Ecoboost 300 | Homestead-Miami Speedway | Homestead, FL |
*Note: Kyle’s win at Pocono was in the XFINITY series but not in the ENEOS car
About Chip Ganassi Racing Teams
Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 25 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include four cars in the Verizon IndyCar Series, two cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, two cars in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, two factory Ford GT’s in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, two factory Ford GT’s in the FIA World Endurance Championship and two Supercars in Red Bull Global Rallycross. Overall his teams have 18 championships and 170 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400 and six Rolex 24 At Daytonas and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Pa.