Germán Quiroga steps in for Matt Tifft, Red Horse Racing in Iowa Truck race

An issue with a disc in Matt Tifft‘s back resulted in Sam Hornish Jr. replacing the driver in this weekend’s Xfinity Series race at Iowa Speedway.

Now Red Horse Racing has announced Germán Quiroga will drive its No. 11 truck in Tifft’s place in the Camping World Series race in Iowa.

The move comes after Quiroga started second and drove to an eighth-place finish for the team last Friday at Texas Motor Speedway in his first Truck race since 2014. The native of Mexico City raced for Red Horse Racing in 2013 and ’14 and was scheduled to drive the No. 11 Toyota again June 25 at Gateway Motorsports Park.

“I’m really excited to have the chance to race at Iowa this weekend,” Quiroga said in a press release. “It wasn’t originally in the plan, so I’m thankful to Tom DeLoach and Red Horse Racing for giving me this opportunity. I’ve been successful at Iowa in the past, so I’m confident that we’ll have a good Toyota Tundra and be able to pick up a good result.”

In three previous starts at Iowa, the 36-year-old driver has one pole (2014), one top five and two top 10s.

Quiroga will make the start without crew chief Scott Zipadelli, who was suspended for one race weekend for the No. 11 truck violating NASCAR’s lug nut rule at Texas. Zipadelli also was fined $5,000 and put on probation through the end of the calendar year.

NASCAR on NBC podcast, Episode XXIII: Krista Voda

NASCAR America host Krista Voda joined the latest episode of the NASCAR on NBC podcast to discuss her origins in covering NASCAR, her approach to hosting and the balance of presenting sports against the backdrop of real life.

With NASCAR racing at Iowa Speedway this weekend in the Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series, the Clinton, Iowa, native discusses the importance of the 0.8-mile track to her home state as well as her roots in broadcasting and covering racing.

You can listen to the podcast by clicking below or download and subscribe to it on iTunes by clicking here. The free subscription will provide automatic downloads of new episodes to your smartphone. It also is available on Stitcher

Stay tuned for time cues to provide easy referencing while listening to the episode.

Marcus Richmond assumes crew chief role on Cole Custer’s Truck team

After the resignation of Joe Shear Jr. earlier this month, JR Motorsports has named Marcus Richmond the crew chief on the No. 00 of Cole Custer in the Camping World Truck Series.

Richmond takes over duties on Custer’s team heading into the eighth race of the season this weekend at Iowa Speedway.

Richmond has 205 starts as a crew chief in the Truck series and nine victories, including the 2016 season opener at Daytona with Johnny Sauter, who Shear now works with. Richmond helped Ty Dillon earn a runner-up finish in the 2013 championship standings.

“Marcus is a well-known crew chief in the Truck Series garage, and we are delighted he has joined our team,” said Kelley Earnhardt Miller, general manager of JR Motorsports in a press release. “He brings a lot of experience and the kind of steady leadership that can take us to Victory Lane and into the inaugural Chase this season. Paired with Cole and the rest of the team, we are eager to see this new partnership begin at Iowa Speedway.”

Richmond will work with Custer, who is in his first full season in the Truck series. After seven races, Custer is 14th in the point standings. The 18-year-old driver has two Truck wins in the previous two seasons, but his best result this year is fifth a Dover.

“The main reason I came to this team is because they do what it takes to win races, and they have a driver that can win races,” said Richmond in the press release. “I feel like this is a great opportunity to do that here at JR Motorsports, with Cole in the driver’s seat. We are going to have to evaluate where we are with everything and build on it as quickly as possible. With JRM’s knowledge and support from Gene Haas, maybe we can jump to where we need to be quickly. We want to have a good solid plan for the rest of the year.”

NASCAR Next alumni Nicole Behar making ARCA debut

Nicole Behar, who was a member of the 2015-16 NASCAR Next class, will make her ARCA Series debut this weekend at Madison International Speedway.

The 18-year-old driver from Spokane, Washington, will make the start in the Montgomery Ward Fathers Day 200 for  Venturini Motorsports.

Behar is making her ARCA debut after one full season in the K&N Pro Series West, where she drove for a family owned team. Behar is tied for the best result ever by a female driver after finishing second at Irwindale Event Center.

She’s made one start this season in the CARS Super Late Model Tour while also competing in the NorthWest Super Late Model Series.

“ARCA is the next logical step for sure,” Behar said in a press release. “Venturini Motorsports is a great team that has the knowledge and experience to help me get where I want to be. Hopefully, we can come out this weekend with a good finish. It’s only one race so far.”

Madison might be the best place for Behar to debut with Venturini Motorsports. The team has won three of the first four races at the half-mile track, winning with Alex Bowman,Justin Boston and Kyle Benjamin.

“It’d be great to win, but if we could come out with a top-10 that’d be great,” Behar said. “Everyone wants to win but we all know it’s not that simple.”

This weekend will also be the first time Behar will experience live pit stops in a race.

“I’m hoping to get some pit stop practice in before the race,” Behar said. “My dad’s dragging our K&N car in a Toterhome to Madison so I can hopefully practice with a heavy stock car on that track.”

MORE: Nicole Behar’s NASCAR Next Q&A

Ben Kennedy sponsored by Wheelwell for Iowa truck race; making Xfinity debut

Ben Kennedy‘s No. 33 Truck will have a new primary sponsor for this weekend’s Speediatrics 200 at Iowa Speedway.

Kennedy, who will be in his fifth race with GMS racing, will be sponsored by Wheelwell, a San Francisco-based website that “brings together automotive enthusiasts, service professionals and brands in a uniquely visual way that enables consumers to find the very best products for their cars.”

Kennedy is currently ninth in the Camping World Truck Series point standings following a fourth-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway. It was Kennedy’s first top five and his second top-10 finish of the season. Kennedy’s best result in three starts a Iowa is sixth in 2014.

“I am looking forward to introducing Wheelwell to millions of NASCAR fans and fellow car enthusiasts,” said Kennedy. “Like many others in the racing community, I have a few ongoing vehicle projects and Wheelwell.com allows me to keep organized, seek help and learn from other members who are building, restoring or enhancing their vehicles.”

Wheelwell joins JACOB Companies and Weber Grills in sponsoring the No. 33 since Kennedy signed with GMS Racing in May.

Kennedy will also make his Xfinity Series debut this weekend, driving the No. 2 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing. The No. 2 is the car usually driven by Austin Dillonor Paul Menard.

“I’m really looking forward to practice on Friday,” Kennedy said in a press release. “It’s been a little while since I’ve been behind the wheel of a car. I’m used to racing trucks, but I’ve spent some time with (crew chief) Danny (Stockman) and the guys this week getting the car ready and it makes me confident we’ll roll off the truck fast.”

Watch LIVE: NASCAR America at 6 p.m. ET: Ganassi Racing report, ThorSport update and more

Today’s episode of NASCAR America airs from 6 – 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN and continues breaking down stories from last weekend at Michigan International Speedway.

Today’s show is hosted by Krista Voda, Steve Letarte, Jeff Burton from Stamford, Connecticut, and are joined by
Dale Jarrett from Burton’s Garage.

Included in today’s show:

–Report from Chip Ganassi Racing by Dave Burns on Kyle Larson, who finished third Sunday at Michigan.

— NBC Sports’ Dustin Long gives an update on ThorSport Racing, which had a fire ravaged its headquarters in Sandusky, Ohio, over the weekend.

— We bring you the sights and sounds of the weekend in Scan All Michigan.

— With NASCAR, IndyCar, and Formula One all racing last weekend, there were many unexpected moments across the world of racing. Catch all the strange, funny, and even furry moments on the track in “Expect the Unexpected”!

· The youth movement is growing bigger and bigger in NASCAR, and it hit a new level in Sunday’s Sprint Cup race with the youngest top three finishers in the history of the sport. We’ll have “The Mayor,” our own Jeff Burton, weigh in on how far this movement can take the sport in years to come.

If you’re not near a TV, you can watch online or on the NBC Sports app via at the NASCAR stream on NBC Sports.

If you plan to stream the show on your laptop or portable device, be sure to have your username and password from your cable/satellite/telco provider handy so your subscription can be verified.

Once you enter that information, you’ll have access to the stream.

Click here at 6 p.m. ET to watch live via the stream.

NASCAR America: Jeff ‘The Mayor’ Burton on why youth movement is happening

Jeff Burton is fascinated at how much success the young drivers are having this season in NASCAR. Why is 2016 such a turning point in the sport that seems to make if feel like a changing of the guard?