Front Row Motorsports heads to EchoPark Speedway with two drivers who have consistently shown speed at the reconfigured Georgia oval and another looking for redemption after a difficult weekend at Chicagoland.
The organization’s strongest Atlanta hopes may rest with Zane Smith, who has quietly developed into one of the more consistent performers at EchoPark Speedway. Since returning to Front Row Motorsports, Smith has never finished worse than 11th at the track, including back-to-back seventh-place finishes and a race earlier this season where he once again came home seventh. The No. 38 team believes Atlanta offers a legitimate shot at its first victory together.
“We’ve had a lot of speed at EchoPark since I’ve been back at FRM,” Smith said. “We keep running up front and getting close to getting the job done there.”
Smith will carry Aaron’s Rent to Own’s patriotic Lucky Dog paint scheme as the team looks to turn that speed into a breakthrough result.
Todd Gilliland also enters the weekend with momentum after advancing to the Round of 8 in NASCAR’s In-Season Challenge. The No. 34 driver will face Alex Bowman head-to-head with a spot in the semifinals and a chance at NASCAR’s $1 million prize on the line. Gilliland considers Atlanta one of his favorite tracks and has regularly qualified near the front throughout his Cup Series career.
“Atlanta has always been a favorite for me,” Gilliland said. “We always seem to qualify well and be in contention throughout the race.”
Meanwhile, Noah Gragson and the No. 4 team hope to rebound after a frustrating 27th-place finish at Chicagoland. Gragson finished 14th in February’s Atlanta race and has a strong history at the track in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, where he recorded two poles, three top-five finishes and five top-10s in six starts.
This weekend, Gragson’s Ford Mustang will feature Long John Silver’s popular “Fish Yeah” paint scheme.