By Jerry Jordan, Editor
AVONDALE, Ariz. – For Noah Gragson, it’s all or nothing this week as he starts the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at ISM Raceway; he is focused solely on winning but the rookie has grown, matured and become more focused during his first year in at JR Motorsports.
Stage points don’t matter. Second place doesn’t matter. He’s the furthest back in the points standings and still in contention for the title. What matters to Gragson, an up-and-coming star from Las Vegas, is taking the checkered flag in Arizona desert and having a complete reset to battle for the championship next week at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
“Luckily, we still have an opportunity to race for the championship and get to Homestead,” Gragson told Kickin’ the Tires. “Unfortunately, we are, kind of, behind the eight-ball and, kind of, in that must-win position. It would be good for this team to make it to Homestead but if try our best, which I know we are, it doesn’t really matter, as long as, I know we did the best shot we could.”
Despite knowing the pressure is on, Gragson isn’t worried. He said it’s almost easier knowing his primary goal is to win and he’s in. And it’s not like he hasn’t been in pressure situations before. Stress is part of a racer’s life but to him, the fact that he knows what he has to do seems to somehow make him calmer as he talks about the possibility of being king of the Xfinity hill. Getting the win would be his first in the series but he has been close with eight Top 5’s and 20 Top 10’s this year.
“We’re not really chasing stage points because it doesn’t really matter for that,” he said. “We just need to focus on beating the rest of the 37 guys out there. It is going to be a challenge, it is going to be tough but I know if we keep on working at it and digging, I know we can be there at the end.
“I was always really good here at Phoenix in the truck series, on the flip side, we came here earlier in the year and I had really little experience running here in the Xfinity Series.”
Gragson said his car is about fifth on the charts if he had to evaluate it. That’s not good enough but he was confident they would get it right for the race and said his crew chief, Dave Elenz, who has won the past two Xfinity Series Championships, will make the changes needed for him to be faster on the track.
“I am a lot more confident than I was earlier in the year,” Gragson said. “Right now, I feel more confident than ever. That’s what my crew chief, Dave Elenz, has pounded into my brain. He’s won the past two championships, right. He has made it pretty clear that circumstances are in several different ways, different. So, he just says if you can do the best job you can, be available, be accountable for me and, come focused, come ready, drive the racecar like you know how to and as fast as you can, whether we go out there and win this race this weekend and go to Homestead and win that race too or we finish 15th this weekend; as long as, we did our best. That is what he has really been driving into me, so I am really happy to have a crew chief where I can relate to him and a team that sticks behind me.
“Obviously, we want to win but it is not the end of the world if it doesn’t happen. We’re going try our tails off to get to Homestead.”