LOUDON, N.H. — Driver Kaz Grala upgraded his support system for the most challenging phase of his racing career.
Grala, 20, secured a part-time gig with Richard Childress Racing after competing as an independent last year with Fury Race Cars.
The Westboro native and Worcester Academy graduate will compete in his fourth NASCAR Xfinity Series race this season when he climbs inside the No. 21 Chevy Camaro for Saturday’s ROXOR 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
“We figured, let’s take this to the best team out there in terms of sponsor relations and that is Richard Childress Racing,” Grala said. “It turned out they have got some pretty good equipment on the race track so it was a match made in heaven.”
Grala caught a huge break when Childress management paired him with veteran crew chief Justin Alexander, a nurturing and knowledgeable pit boss who specializes in young drivers. Grala is hoping their collaboration will result in a meaningful run on the Magic Mile.
“I think we work together excellently,” Grala said. “He is very good at what he does and he has a lot of experience so it’s perfect for me as a rookie to have a veteran crew chief at the top of the box.
“I would say that our chemistry is pretty good and we’ve gotten to know each other quite a bit. By our third race at Dover I felt we were pretty much on the same page. In New Hampshire I am really confident we should have a strong showing as long as we have clean race and having nothing go wrong that is out of our control. We need to maximize our own performance and hope that luck will be on our side instead of against us.”
Tyler Reddick of Corning, Calif., is the flag-bearer for Richard Childress Racing, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary on the tour.
Reddick is in first place in the Xfinity driver standings with 764 points in 17 starts that includes three wins, 12 finishes in the top five and 14 in the top 10. Sharing the garage with an ambitious and seasoned driver such as Reddick has been crucial to Grala’s development.
“I’ve gotten to know Tyler quite well over this season,” Grala said. “We work out together every day at the shop and he’s been great to lean on in my first three races this year.”
The Xfinity Series has been dominated to this point by the “Big 3” of Reddick, Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing and Cole Custer of Stewart-Haas Racing.
Bell operates the No. 20 Rheem-Watts Toyota and has accumulated 697 points in 17 races with four wins, 10 top-five finishes and 11 in the top 10.
Custer mans the double zero Haas Automation Ford and has accrued 689 points over 17 races with five wins, 10 finishes in the top five and 11 in the top 10.
“Obviously we are all pretty good and any weekend any one of us can win, that’s what it feels like,” Custer said. “It is pretty crazy that we have a Big 3 in this series and pretty crazy how so often we finish 1-2-3.”