#NASCARisBack … Monday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) event at Charlotte Motor Speedway (CMS) marks the return to competition for Austin Hill and the HRE team. Hill returns to the seat of the No. 61 AISIN Group, AISIN AW Toyota Supra for his third NXS appearance of the season after making starts in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway and Auto Club Speedway (ACS). The special edition, Monday night NXS event will be the first race of double duty for Hill at CMS this week, as he will also compete the following night in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.
Looking for More … In his limited experience of three starts at the NXS level, Hill has adapted quickly to his Toyota Supra. Monday’s return to the track provides him a prime chance to out-perform his career best finish of ninth, which came in his series debut at Indianapolis Motor Speedway last season. Most recently, the four-time Gander Trucks winner was on pace for a career-best finish at ACS in February before a flat tire interrupted his top-10 run. The short trip across town to CMS from the HRE race shop will be a unique challenge for Hill and the AISIN Group, AISIN AW team as the rescheduled event format will have the field take the green flag without any practice or qualifying.
Honoring a Frontline Hero … HRE will recognize some of “The Real Heroes” in upcoming events by running names of frontline workers over the door in thanks for their contributions. On Monday night, Hill will carry Julie Diane Holmes of Martinez, Ca. on board the No. 61 Toyota Supra. Holmes has been a Registered Nurse for 13 years working in the Emergency Department and After House Advice Triage. She currently works the Night Shift as an Emergency Room Registered Nurse for Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez, California. Holmes also works part time as an Advice Nurse for UCSF Benioff Children’s Physicians in San Francisco California and is a longtime NASCAR fan.
Charlotte History … Monday night’s 300-mile contest will mark Hill’s first NXS start at CMS and his fourth career start on the tour. Hill has three previous Gander Trucks starts at CMS and notched his track-best finish of sixth last season.Tune In … FOX Sports 1 will have live coverage from CMS for Monday night’s green flag at 7:30 p.m. ET. Stay updated with Hill and the No. 61 AISIN Group, AISIN AW team by following @Hattori_Racing on Twitter, Hattori Racing Enterprises on Facebook, and @hattoriracing on Instagram.
Austin Hill Quote:On returning to action for the first time in 12 weeks:“It’ll definitely feel good to be back in the car and get out there again. I’ve stayed in the gym as much as possible and have been on iRacing quite a bit to stay mentally sharp too. Our guys put a lot of effort into this AISIN Group, AISIN AW Supra for Monday night. I think it’ll help in the long run to pull double duty at Charlotte this week. It’s been a long time since we’ve all been in the seat, so having the extra laps and seat time with be a big help. When you don’t have any practice, it’s always a little bit of a guessing game, but I know (crew chief) Dan (Stillman) and the guys will have our Supra in good shape to start the race. 300 miles is a long night, so we’ll have a couple chances to adjust on it, and hopefully we can put ourselves up towards the front and restart the year with a solid night.”