DAYTONA, FL. – While there is always a heightened level of anxiety when competing at superspeedways, Chase Briscoe brings a steady hand to Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, site of Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR Cup Series race.
In the season-opening Daytona 500 back on February 19, Briscoe finished a solid 10th, and in the second superspeedway race of the year on April 21 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Briscoe finished 12th. Living by the time-honored mantra that to finish first, first, you must finish, Briscoe has set the table for another front-running drive at Daytona.
The Coke Zero Sugar 400 will start Briscoe’s eighth career NASCAR Cup Series at Daytona. The driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Compact Tractors Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing earned his best Daytona result in the 2022 Daytona 500 when he finished third in just his third Cup Series start at the high-banked, 2.5-mile oval.
“We’ve been able to finish pretty well at the superspeedways, and our cars have had pretty good speed at everyone we’ve been to the last year-and-a-half, two years,” said Chase Briscoe. “Our balance has been pretty good, too; we just haven’t been able to seal the deal all the way and get the win. That’s kind of what we have to do now, is get the win, so that’s what we’re going to try to do. We’ll try to be as aggressive as we can and still make it to the end. But, yeah, our cars have been really, really good there and we’ve been able to have good finishes, we just need to be able to finish a little better. Hopefully, we can do that. One thing that’s certainly on my bucket list is winning a superspeedway race. It’s kind of the only track I haven’t been able to win at in my career, and it’s certainly one that’s driven me crazy.”
In last year’s Coke Zero Sugar 400, Briscoe won the pole led twice for a race-high 67 laps before being ensnared in a late-race accident that left him an undeserved 30th.
Briscoe has made seven starts at Daytona outside the NASCAR Cup Series. He has five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts and one start apiece in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series. In the Xfinity Series at Daytona, he finished fifth and third in the 2020 season opener and August races, respectively, while qualifying on the pole in the latter event and leading a combined 27 laps between the two races. His Truck Series outing in the 2017 season opener resulted in a third-place finish, while his ARCA start in the 2016 opener yielded a fourth-place finish.
Briscoe says it is intense racing at Daytona, especially with it being the second-to-last race of the regular season where, for many, it’s the last chance to earn a playoff berth.
“It’s chaos, full-blown chaos,” Briscoe said. “Just any time we go to Daytona or Talladega, the intensity is always high, and guys know it’s a great opportunity for them to win, whereas at other tracks, they just don’t have the opportunity. Guys are more aggressive, and there are just more guys in the mix. Every time we have this second Daytona race, it’s just full-blown chaos because everybody knows that’s their final opportunity to make the playoffs. I feel like this race is always a wreck-fest, especially at the end, and not a lot of cars finish. Hopefully, we’re on the good side of things and can stay out of all of it and just be rolling at the end, and if you’re rolling at the end and don’t have a lot of damage, you’re going to have a really good shot to win the race. Hopefully, we can go there and do that.”
Briscoe says there is no secret to performing at Daytona and Talladega.
“It’s not really any secret. It’s just kind of how luck goes sometimes and just being at the right place at the right time,” added Briscoe. “Even Talladega, we were able to finish well, but I was sideways and backward across the line. There are a lot of variables that go into it. I just strive to honestly use my gut. At times, it’s steered me wrong, but more often than not, it’s put me in the right situation, just trying to understand when the wrecks are coming and things like that. Just need to go there and do the same stuff I typically do and not try to do anything too fancy and see if it’s good enough.”
At the Daytona 500, everybody is willing to do whatever it takes to win, Briscoe said.
“It’s the biggest race of the year,” added Briscoe. “It’s the one that everybody dreams about winning, and guys are making extremely aggressive moves and blocks and things like that. It’s no different than when we go to this race. Everybody knows it’s their last chance to make the playoffs. It’s probably a little bit different because some of the guys who have a couple of wins might not put themselves in a super bad spot just to win the race because they don’t want to get crashed. But if they can win the race, they’ll throw big blocks and do whatever. I would say that it’s super, super similar between the Daytona 500 and this race just because of what the stakes are and where it’s at in the season. If this race was the 10th race of the year, then it probably wouldn’t be as intense, but the schedule makes it really intense and really close to the Daytona 500.”
Mahindra Ag North America is a proud sponsor of Briscoe and Stewart-Haas, and 2024 highlights an impressive milestone for Mahindra – 30 years of selling tractors in the United States. Houston-based Mahindra Ag North America is part of Mahindra Group’s Automotive and Farm Sector, the No. 1-selling farm tractor company in the world, based on volumes across all company brands. Mahindra offers a range of tractor models from 20-75 horsepower, implements, and the ROXOR heavy-duty UTV. Mahindra farm equipment is engineered to be easy to operate by first-time tractors or side-by-side owners and heavy duty to tackle the tough jobs of rural living, farming, and ranching. Steel-framed Mahindra Tractors and side-by-sides are ideal for customers who demand performance, reliability, and comfort. Mahindra dealers are independent, family-owned businesses located throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Mahindra Ag North America is using the Coke Zero Sugar 400 to promote its newest line of sub-compact and compact tractors, designed with features to enhance operation for first-time buyers. Boasting comfort amenities like telematics, leather seats, and USB charging ports, the Mahindra 1100 and 2100 models are designed around ease of use for acreage owners, farmers, and ranchers, with features like a push-button PTO and side-by-side HST pedals. Other features include a hand throttle on the console, tilt and telescopic steering, quick raise and lower, and auto lift at three points while turning and backing. Every 1100 and 2100 series model is available in open station or cab configurations, with an HVAC system exclusive to the 2126. This line of compacts has compatible Mahindra attachments, including loaders, backhoes, mowers, snowblowers, post-hole diggers, and grapples. The loader on the 1100 series has a max lift of 770 pounds, while the 2100 has a max lift of 1,760 pounds.
