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Hendrick Motorsports makes its return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series on July 2 at Road America for the first of three events. Prior to the race, crew chief Kevin Meendering explained the reason behind this decision.
“The whole goal of this is to make the drivers’ performance on Sunday better,” Meendering said in a video from HMS. “Practice time is very limited now. They get 15, 20 minutes on a race weekend so anything we can do to get those guys more time on track, feel of the track, how the track changes, and just getting in the mindset of the strategies involved.”
The No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro will make its season debut on July 2 with the Henry 180 Xfinity Series race. Kyle Larson will be the first to control the entry as he pulls double-duty. Alex Bowman will take over at Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course on July 30 and then William Byron will finish out the limited schedule at Watkins Glen International on August 20.
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The Prep Work Required Converting an Old Stock Car
Preparing the No. 17 Chevrolet Camaro for its Xfinity Series schedule was not a simple task, especially considering that Hendrick Motorsports has to focus on its array of Next Gen cars. The organization addressed this potential issue by working with an existing partner.
As Meendering explained, JR Motorsports played a pivotal role in this process. The Xfinity Series team has an alliance with HMS, and it agreed to field a part-time entry in 2022 for Chase Elliott, Byron, and Larson. This partnership continued as HMS did most of the work on the No. 17 while JRM contributed to the effort.
“It’s been a lot of work,” Meendering said in a release from HMS. “We’ve relied heavily on our partners at JR Motorsports. They’ve helped us out a ton. We are kind of geared up for the Next Gen car now. We had put all that other stuff away. Dug up an old car from last year, converted it over to an [Xfinity Series car]. They’ve got a strong program over there [at JR Motorsports] and they’ve been helping us out a lot.”
The Experience Will Particularly Benefit Larson at Road America
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GettyKyle Larson will gain experience at Road America.
Larson has no shortage of success on the various road courses in NASCAR. He already has three wins in 23 starts, all of which he secured during his championship-winning 2021 campaign. However, his lone Cup Series start at Road America resulted in a 16th-place finish.
Unlike many other drivers in the Cup Series field, Larson does not have extensive experience at the road course. He has the one Cup Series start in 2021 and an Xfinity Series start back in the 2013 season. He finished seventh while driving for Turner Scott Motorsports.
The 2022 season will provide Larson with an opportunity to gain more experience at the 4.048-mile road course. He will battle for a trophy on July 2 while refreshing his memory about the turns and potential trouble spots. Larson will then return the following day to pursue his second win of the 2022 season.
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