Joe Graf Jr. – No. 19 CoverSeal Toyota GR Supra Preview – ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway - Speedway Digest

No. 19 CoverSeal Toyota GR Supra News and Notes:

GRAF JR. AT RICHMOND: Graf Jr. will make his 100th career NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Richmond Raceway this Saturday as he gets behind the wheel of the No.19 CoverSeal Toyota GR Supra. In five prior Richmond starts, Graf Jr. has an average finish of 24.0 at the track, highlighted by a 14th place finish there in 2019. Entering Saturday, the New Jersey native sits at 19th in the driver standings, just 49 points short of the playoff bubble. With the No. 19 car coming off of back-to-back third place finishes, Graf Jr. is looking to keep the momentum going with a strong run around the three-quarter mile short-track this weekend.
GRAF JR. MAKES MILESTONE START: At just 24 years old, Graf Jr. is set to make his 100th Xfinity start on Saturday. After joining the series at the ripe age of 19 years old, Graf Jr. has solidified himself as a familiar face in the garage area through his driving ability and willingness to go above and beyond for his partners. With plans already set to spend the rest of the 2023 season with Joe Gibbs Racing and RSS Racing, Graf Jr. already has his sights set on even bigger milestones in the future.
PREVIOUSLY AT JGR: Graf Jr. is in his first year at JGR, where he has made two starts for the organization earlier in the 2023 NXS season. With an 11th place finish at Auto Club Speedway and a 15th place performance the following week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Graf Jr. is knocking on the door of his first top-ten with the organization. Following Richmond, Graf is scheduled to run at least two more races in the No. 19 this season at New Hampshire and Kansas.
ON THE PITBOX:Crew Chief Jason Ratcliff will oversee the No. 19 team and its driver rotation in 2023. Ratcliff is in year 18 under the JGR banner. He won the 2009 Xfinity Championship in tandem with Kyle Busch after an eight-win season. The championship-winning crew chief has 54 Xfinity wins across five different drivers, including current JGR NCS driver, Christopher Bell. He has 15 NCS wins as crew chief between two former JGR drivers – Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano.
NO. 19 IN 2023: The JGR No. 19 will have a rotating schedule of drivers throughout the 2023 season. Drivers on the schedule as of Richmond are Myatt Snider, Ty Gibbs, Connor Mosack, Ryan Truex, and Graf Jr. With four top-five finishes through the first six races, the group of drivers have carried the No. 19 Toyota GR Supra to seventh in the owners’ points standings.
JGR AT RICHMOND: JGR has achieved immense success at Richmond over the years. In 116 combined NXS starts, JGR has collected 11 wins, 31 top-fives, 60 top-10s, 2,539 laps led and nine pole awards.
FOLLOW ALONG:Follow along for updates and a behind-the-scenes look at Graf Jr’s 2023 season.

Twitter: @joegrafjr I Facebook: Joe Graf Jr. I Instagram: @joegrafjr I Website: Joegrafracing.com

RACE INFO: Coverage of this weekend’s Xfinity Series race at Richmond Raceway is scheduled for Saturday, April 1st, at 1 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, MRN Radio, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Joe Graf Jr., Driver of the No. 19 CoverSeal Toyota GR Supra:

“How do you feel about getting back in the No. 19 CoverSeal Toyota GR Supra after two strong runs earlier in the year?”

“I’m excited to get back behind the wheel of the No. 19 CoverSeal Toyota GR Supra. My first two races with Jason (Ratcliff) really helped me get familiar with the team and the car. I’ve always enjoyed racing at Richmond and I think this weekend will give us the chance to build upon that and hopefully lead to a quality run for us.”

“You’re making your 100th career Xfinity start on Saturday. How does it feel?”

“It’s a blessing above all else. It’s hard to believe I’ve come so far over the years. Milestones are nice because they remind you to reflect back on your time in the sport, but you still have to focus on the task at hand. We’ve got a job to do in Richmond, and I’m going to do everything I can to make this start memorable for me, my team and partners.”

Graf Jr.’s 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Season Stats: