RED BULL GLOBAL RALLYCROSS RACE PREVIEW: THE DIRT TRACK AT CHARLOTTE

July 25, 2014 by Global RallyCross Championship

The Charlotte area is home to a significant portion of the Red Bull Global Rallycross field, making this weekend's tilt at The Dirt Track at Charlotte a crucial event on most drivers' schedules. Tanner Foust comes into this weekend's race on a high note after winning in New York last week, while Brian Deegan returns to the series after a two-race absence.

TUNE IN INFORMATION:

◾Saturday, July 26, 2:00PM ET on NBC (live)

LAST RACE: Three starts were the charm in the main event, with three different drivers—Sverre Isachsen, Nelson Piquet Jr., and Tanner Foust—each grabbing the holeshot once. Foust took the lead on the third and final start and never looked back, while teammate Scott Speed clawed through the field to cross the line second and Piquet maintained third. However, a penalty applied to Speed after the event promoted Piquet to second and Ken Block to the next podium spot.

DRIVER CHANGES: 14 drivers are entered at The Dirt Track at Charlotte: all 13 from last week's race in New York, plus the returning Brian Deegan. Deegan is the second-most prolific driver in series history; he has 11 podium finishes, including a runner-up performance at Charlotte last year.

THE TRACK: The Dirt Track at Charlotte boasts the most dirt that Red Bull GRC drivers have seen all season, with 65% of the course comprised of the loose surface. The eight-turn, half-mile layout, effectively preserved but slightly cleaned up from last year, now features more gradual corners in turns one and four, plus a small jump on the exit of oval turn two.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS: For the first time, a Red Bull GRC event at The Dirt Track at Charlotte will feature night racing when the series completes two rounds of heat races under the lights on Friday. The series is no stranger to racing in the dark, having run all three of its races in Las Vegas at night, as well as the finale of the first Charlotte race in 2012.

CONSISTENCY WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS: Nelson Piquet Jr.'s four-race foray into Red Bull GRC in 2013 saw him languishing at the back of the pack in an uncompetitive car. This year has been the polar opposite; with three podium finishes in a row, including back-to-back runner-up results in Washington, DC and New York, he's now the points leader. Coming into Charlotte on Friday, his birthday, he leads the field by 35 points.

WINNING WAYS: Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross has won three of the first four events of the 2014 Red Bull GRC season, with Scott Speed taking home trophies at Top Gear Festival Barbados and X Games Austin and Tanner Foust backing him up at Volkswagen Rallycross NY. Despite waiting for the newly-developed Beetle, the stand-in Polo has done a remarkable job, allowing the two drivers to win an impressive 12 combined heat races.

GENERAL-LY COMPETITIVE: It's not too often that Brian Deegan doesn't come out of a Red Bull GRC event with a solid finish. With 11 podiums in 21 starts, as well as 12 heat victories, he's in the top five of the series' all-time leaderboards in both categories. In 2012 and 2013, his two seasons of full-time Red Bull GRC competition, he only failed to make it to the main event of a race twice.

QUOTES: A selection of quotes in advance of this weekend's Red Bull Global Rallycross event at The Dirt Track at Charlotte:

Scott Speed, Driver, #77 Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross Polo: 'For me, it's great to be close, because there are so many friends and family who don't get to see what I do on the weekends, so they get to come out and check it out. Running under the lights will be very interesting—it hasn't been done before, but I don't expect to have any issue, having run so much at night in NASCAR over the years. But it will be interesting, and I bet the cars will look even faster out there at night. So I'm looking forward to that.'

Joni Wiman, Driver, #31 Olsbergs MSE Ford Fiesta ST: 'With Lites here last year, it was good to find smooth lines around every corner, which is really important in the Supercars to get speed. Obviously the first corner is a bit different, and there are some small changes, but it looks good. I don't think it's going to make a big difference, maybe a few miles an hour, but nothing major. But the jump is going to be quite interesting. It's special for me because I've never done a night race—let's just hope it will get dark enough so that it looks really cool! That's going to be something really special.'

Steve Arpin, Driver, #00 Royal Purple Racing/OMSE2 Ford Fiesta: 'Everyone here at Charlotte Motor Speedway has done such a great job of putting this track together. They've added a couple of new twists, and a couple of differences to the track from last year. Last year was a good learning experience, and this year they've kind of tweaked it. I think you're going to see three, four, sometimes five wide racing this weekend. I cannot wait to get out there and feel what my Royal Purple Ford has to offer!'

Emma Gilmour, Driver, #27 Hyundai/Rhys Millen Racing Veloster: 'I like the track because it's got a bit more room than where we've been racing so far this year, except for Barbados maybe. But it's the first time we've really got some dirt, and it looks like a really good track. It looks like it's got a bit more room for overtaking, and it looks like quite a bit can happen, so I'm looking forward to driving it.'

DRIVER POINTS:

1.Nelson Piquet Jr., 184

2.Scott Speed, 149

3.Steve Arpin, 140

4.Joni Wiman, 124

5.Patrik Sandell, 116

6.Ken Block, 99

7.Tanner Foust, 95

8.Austin Dyne, 94

9.Brian Deegan, 70

10.Rhys Millen, 65

11.Sverre Isachsen, 60