Getty Kaulig Racing will have a new driver for the Bristol Dirt Race.
Kaulig Racing has made a significant move for the race weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. The NASCAR Cup Series team has brought a dirt ace into the fold.
According to a March 9 press release, Dirt Late Model competitor Jonathan Davenport will join Kaulig Racing for the Food City Dirt Race on Sunday, April 9. He will make his NASCAR national series debut while driving the No. 13 Nutrien AG Solutions Chevrolet Camaro.
Things are about to get DIRTy. 👀
We’re thrilled to have Jonathan Davenport behind the wheel of the No. 13 @NutrienAgRetail Chevy for the Bristol Dirt race!
“Jonathan Davenport is an all-time favorite of mine because of how well he has done in his dirt racing career,” said Kaulig Racing President Chris Rice. “I’m super excited to have his side of dirt racing intermix with NASCAR and see what he can do in one of our Kaulig Racing Chevrolets. He’s a great guy, a great racer and we’re looking forward to making our relationship with Nutrien Ag Solutions deeper.”
Davenport Has Experience Competing at Bristol Dirt
GettyThe NASCAR Cup Series returns to Bristol Motor Speedway (dirt).
The 39-year-old Georgia native does not have any NASCAR Cup Series debut in his racing career. What he does have is experience competing on the dirt version of Bristol Motor Speedway.
Davenport has competed in several events at Bristol Motor Speedway (dirt). One particular example was a Super Late Model race in 2021 where he passed Kyle Larson with 15 laps to go and built up a 3.5-second lead before winning the $50,000 feature.
Davenport, who won the XR Super Series title last year by 297 points, enjoyed a very successful 2022 season as he won 24 events. His list of achievements includes collecting the $1,002,022 prize at Eldora Speedway.
“Superman” will now return to Bristol Motor Speedway and face off with Larson once again. He will do so in an entirely different style of vehicle, which he will gain experience in during practice on Friday, April 7.
“This is literally a dream come true for me. I’ll get to race against the best race car drivers in the world and will get to do it at one of my favorite tracks,” Davenport said.
“I have a lot to learn but have two great teammates in AJ [Allmendinger] and Justin [Haley] to learn from. We started working on this last October during the ROVAL weekend in Charlotte and to see it come to fruition is absolutely amazing.”
The No. 13 Will Compete in Several Events
AJ Allmendinger and Justin Haley are the two full-time drivers in Kaulig Racing’s Cup Series program. They both suit up each week while competing for points, wins, and spots in the playoffs.
The No. 13, for comparison, is the part-time entry that Kaulig Racing added for the 2023 season. This entry will primarily feature Xfinity Series driver Chandler Smith as he makes select starts. Though Davenport will control it at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The No. 13 first made an appearance at Daytona International Speedway. Smith attempted to qualify for the Daytona 500, but he ultimately fell short while Travis Pastrana, Jimmie Johnson, Conor Daly, and Zane Smith took the four open spots.
Smith still has multiple other opportunities to make his Cup Series debut. His schedule features potential starts at Richmond Raceway on April 2, the All-Star Open at North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 21, the playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway on October 1, and the season finale at Phoenix Raceway on November 5.