Team Info/Stats:
Crew Chief: Eddie Troconis
Driver Point Standings: 7th
Owner Point Standings: 9th
Spotter: Lloyd Garner
News and Notes:
- This Week’s No. 41 Alpha Energy Solutions Ford F-150… The No. 41 Alpha Energy Solutions Ford F-150 team will unload chassis No. 61 for Saturday’s Eaton 200 Presented by CK Power at Gateway Motorsports Park. Seeing its third season of competition, after its debut at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2016, the chassis, nicknamed “El Primo,” has one pole and 134 laps led (Martinsville Speedway, 2018), one top-five (ISM Raceway, 2017) and two top-10 finishes (New Hampshire, 2017 and Martinsville, fall 2017) to its record.
- Louis Stats…Making his third appearance at Gateway, Rhodes nabbed a pole in his first appearance at the track in 2016, he went on to finish second while leading four laps. A year later, Rhodes started 12th and finished eighth, before the tracks repave.
- NASCAR’s Acceleration Nation & The Boys and Girls Club… Ahead of this weekend’s Eaton 200 Presented by CK Power, Rhodes will meet with NASCAR Acceleration Nation and Jackie Joyner-Kersee Boys & Girls Club students of East St. Louis on Friday. A part of NASCAR’s Multicultural Development initiatives, the students will also tour the track, learning more about the sport and track that’s right in their own backyard.
- Catch Rhodes at Gateway… Rhodes will join fellow ThorSport Racing teammates, and other NCWTS drivers, for a series autograph session, Saturday, June 23 from 3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. CT, located under the grand stands behind the start/finish line at Gateway Motorsports Park.
Chatting with Ben Rhodes…
“I think the new surface at Gateway Motorsports Park is going to be a big challenge for many of the teams. With the new asphalt, you’re going to see higher speeds, less bumps, but also more load in the corners. That means the teams are really going to have to focus on set ups, potentially changing things around quite a bit. You’re really going to have to pull from the notebook to try and figure out what’s fast here. This weekend, we really need a solid race to get ourselves back on the right track for points, and to build momentum going into Chicagoland Speedway, and my home track, Kentucky Speedway, coming up. I have faith we can do that at Gateway this weekend.”