When asked what his favorite track is on the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series schedule, Austin Hill would respond with “Dover International Speedway”. The driver of the No. 16 United Rentals Toyota labels “The Monster Mile” as his “all-time favorite racetrack” and returns to extend his lead in the championship standings on Friday evening. Hill knows the way to victory lane at Dover in the ARCA Menards Series East and is looking for his second trophy of the 2020 Gander Trucks campaign. He currently leads the driver point standings by 54 markers with four races before the playoffs begin, and he and the HRE team are focused on the 15 playoff points that accompany the regular season crown.
Seal the Deal … One of the hallmarks of Hill and the No. 16 team led by crew chief Scott Zipadelli has been the ability to close races in 2020. The team has delivered one victory, six top-five, and 10 top-10 finishes in 12 races thus far. Hill has managed to post finishes that are indicative of his outright performance, which is illustrated by his average finish of 7.33 supporting his average running position of 6.8. The Winston, Ga. leads all Gander Trucks competitors in numerous loop data statistics, including average finish, average running position, laps led (198), and driver rating (108.2).
Monster Mile … Five of Hill’s 86 Gander Truck Series starts have come on Dover’s concrete canyons. He recorded a seventh-place finish at “The Monster Mile” last year, his first Dover appearance behind the wheel of the No. 16 Toyota Tundra. He is looking for his first top-five result but does have a pair of ARCA Menards Series East victories on his resume, previously known as the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. Hill scored his first victory at Dover in 2013 and went back-to-back as a member of the NASCAR Next class in 2014.
Chassis Selection … Zipadelli and the United Rentals team have prepared chassis No. 010 for Friday’s 200-mile contest at Dover. Hill most recently raced this Toyota Tundra at Kentucky Speedway where he finished fifth in the rain-shortened event. This chassis went to victory lane three times last season and has a best finish of third this season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Tune In … FOX Sports 1 will carry live coverage of Friday’s KDI Office Technology 200 beginning at 4:30 p.m. ET with NASCAR Raceday, followed by the green flag at 5:00 p.m. ET. Stay updated with Hill and the No. 16 team by following @Hattori_Racing on Twitter, Hattori Racing Enterprises on Facebook, and @hattoriracing on Instagram.
Austin Hill Quote:On returning to his favorite track:“Dover is my all-time favorite racetrack. It’s a special place to me since that’s where I got my first NASCAR win. We had our own family team at the time and that was a big deal for us, especially to win two years in a row. I’ve just always been comfortable at Dover. It’s a fast place and things happen really quick. It’s a fun racetrack to attack dropping down into the corners and then up out of the hole on exit. We were pretty good last year, and I think we’ll have an even better Tundra this time around. We’ve done a good job this year at closing out races and getting good finishes on top of stage points. It’d be really nice to get ourselves another win, and for everyone at United Rentals. That would be awesome to bring the ‘Miles the Monster’ trophy home and get ourselves another chunk of playoff points.”
HRE PR
