Parker Retzlaff to Go Cup Racing
What’s Happening? Parker Retzlaff will make his NASCAR Cup Series debut at Daytona this Augst, driving the No. 62 car…
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In a surprise move to some, 21-year-old Parker Retzlaff, an Xfinity Series regular, will debut in the NASCAR Cup Series for MBM Motorsports this weekend at Richmond Raceway. This will be the sixth entry for Carl Long’s team this season.
When NASCAR released its weekly entry list, not too many people expected to see Parker Retzlaff grouped with the Cup Series drivers, especially that he would be driving for Carl Long’s MBM Motorsports. This shock was due to the May 30 news of what was supposed to be Retzlaff’s first Cup start with Beard Motorsports in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway later this month.
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What’s Happening? Parker Retzlaff will make his NASCAR Cup Series debut at Daytona this Augst, driving the No. 62 car…
Why the sudden change? Toby Christie of Racing America contacted MBM and shared on X why such a sudden change of plans occurred.
NASCAR having a driver compete on a smaller stage before attempting a superspeedway race is not out of character. Sometimes, at the beginning of a season, they will have a rookie driver race in a lower tier race at Daytona before racing at a higher level they have yet to run on the track, such as the ARCA starts of Shane Van Gisbergen this season and Chase Elliott in 2014.
These rules are established for the safety of rookies and their opponents, not that Retzlaff doesn’t have experience at tracks longer than 2.5 miles. Retzlaff has six starts on Superspeedways in lower NASCAR Series; at Daytona in the Xfinity Series, he has three starts, three top-tens and a best finish of third in the series season opener.
These past two Xfinity Series seasons, Retzlaff has established himself as a top developmental talent in the sport. While racing for Jordan Anderson Racing, Retzlaff has scored three top-fives and 11 top-tens.
Notably, the young driver has shown speed at Richmond, making it an easy choice for his first career start. Not only did Retzlaff score his first career top-ten at the track, but he also got his first pole at Richmond earlier this season.
While Retzlaff’s entry at Richmond is a Ford, he is in the Chevrolet camp, specifically with teams powered by ECR Engines, of which Richard Childress is Chairman and CEO. This list includes Beard Motorsports, the team Retzlaff is set to drive for at Daytona, given NASCAR’s Approval.
MBM Motorsports will look to gain a good run from the hungry rookie at Richmond. This season, the independent team has finished last in three of the six starts they have made while only finishing on the lead lap at the Chicago Street Circuit.
Retzlaff’s chance to prove himself begins Saturday with qualifying at 5:35 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The green flag for the Cook Out 400 will drop at 6:00 p.m. EST.
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