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Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Todd Gilliland help shovel snow for Wednesday’s Cook Out Clash
Track workers at Bowman-Gray Stadium are getting a helping hand from a few familiar faces. As the crew works to clear the snow for the February 4 Cook Out Clash, NASCAR Cup Series drivers Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Todd Gilliland have brought shovels of their own in an effort to help clear the track’s grandstands.
Stenhouse Jr. offered the invitation to help out with the snow in a reply on X to Bowman-Gray Stadium on February 1, to which the track replied for him to bring his own shovel.
One day later, the driver of the #47 Hyak Motorsports car was seen shoveling snow in the grandstands in a video posted to X by FOX motorsports reporter Bob Pockrass.
Gilliland was also seen helping shovel snow out the grandstands in another X video posted by Pockrass. The racing insider joked that both drivers should get a “snow removal provisional” to get into the February 4 main event, and added that Gilliland is under pressure to make the cut with his wife having people over to watch the race.
Stenhouse and Gilliland will both compete in the Last Chance Qualifier at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, February 4 in an effort to make the 200-lap main event. The Cook Out Clash main event is set to take place at 6 p.m. Eastern time later that day.
NASCAR Postponed Cook Out Clash from Sunday to Wednesday Due to Snow
The NASCAR Cup Series circuit was set to kick off the 2026 season with the running of the Cook Out Clash on Sunday night, February 1. However, after winter weather stormed through Bowman-Gray Stadium, the event was postponed until Monday, February 2.
Yet, the snowfall was still too significant to run on Monday, and the event was pushed back again, this time set for Wednesday, February 4 at 6 p.m. Eastern time.
Practice and qualifying for the Cook Out Clash is set for Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. Eastern time, with the Last Chance Qualifier happening at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time. The LCQ and Cook Out Clash will be televised on FOX, while practice and qualifying can be watched on FS2.
The Cook Out Clash main event is scheduled for 200 laps. It is the second time the event has taken place at Bowman-Gray Stadium. Chase Elliott enters Wednesday’s race as the defending winner.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Said it’s Important to Have Fans in Attendance for Wednesday’s Race
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. took it up on himself to help Bowman Gray’s track workers clear out the snow in preparation for Wednesday’s Cook Out Clash. In an interview with Bob Pockrass, the four-time Cup Series winner spoke to the importance of having fans in the grandstands for the exhibition event.
“This place has always been about hard racing and great race fans. I think for a driver, yeah, I had other plans this week that I would be doing on Wednesday night, but I think it’s more important to race with the fans.”
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is gearing up for his seventh season in the #47 car and 14th full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series. He is a former Daytona 500 winner in 2023 and his latest win came at Talladega in October 2024.
John Breeden John Breeden is a NASCAR contributor at Heavy Sports. He has five years of sports journalism experience. He graduated from James Madison University in May of 2022 with a degree in media arts and design. John is also a sports reporter for the Daily News-Record in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Previously, John was a sports writer for JMU’s The Breeze and a NASCAR content writer for Sportskeeda. More about John Breeden
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