Victory Lane

Crew Chief Charles Denike joins Davey Segal this week (5:45) to discuss the No. 19 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing team's playoffs to date in the Truck Series, having only one finish outside the top 10 to this point, goals and expectations for the remainder of the postseason and the stop/start nature of the NCTS playoffs.

Denike also dives into his background in racing in Virginia before enlisting in the armed forces for almost a decade. He details what he did in the U.S. Army and why he opted to return to motorsports upon finishing his time serving.

He also touches on some parallels in racing and the Army, goes through his rise from K&N to GMS to MHR, explains what kind of a boss Bill McAnally is and more, including what his 2025 plans may include.

Davey also recaps Ricky Stenhouse Jr.'s win at Talladega Superspeedway, looks ahead to the Round of 12 cutoff race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL and Papa Segal pays homage to Les Richter.

He’s back! Ryan Reed joins Davey Segal this week (6:10) ahead of his return to the Craftsman Truck Series at Talladega Superspeedway with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. He explains what he's expecting out of the one-off opportunity, how he's preparing, knowing he'll have a winning-caliber Truck underneath him and why Talladega owes him one.

He also gets us up to speed on what he's been up to the last several years since full-time driving dried up and how he's stayed involved in the sport, the emotions associated with not being a full-time racecar driver anymore and how he wrestled and subsequently settled with that, working a 9-5 day job and racing on the side and more.

Plus, growing up in California in a racing family, moving East at 18-years-old to pursue a career, overcoming the odds as a type 1 diabetic, memories of his triumphant 2015 win at Daytona in the Xfinity Series, the long road to get to that point with Roush Fenway Racing and more.

Davey also discusses Ross Chastain's Kansas win, previews Talladega, the new antitrust lawsuit filed by 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports against NASCAR and Papa Segal pays homage to a broadcasting legend.

Industry veteran Wendy Venturini joins Davey Segal this week (7:40) to discuss her vast career in and out of motorsports spanning almost a quarter of a century. She explains the misconception with her last name and ARCA Menards Series powerhouse Venturini Motorsports, growing up in a racing family, pursuing motorsports as a career avenue and starting at the bottom in production before working her way up to on air broadcasting.

Venturini also shares the story of how the opportunity at SPEED came about while working at NASCAR Productions, the experience of working on NASCAR RaceDay with Rutledge Wood, Kenny Wallace, Jimmy Spencer, John Roberts and more, the differences and nuances between television and radio and what makes each discipline unique.

She also reflects on her near fatal accident in 2018 at Sonoma, where she suffered a basilar skull fracture after being struck by a car, the road to recovery that followed (figuratively and literally) and those that helped her along the way to return to broadcasting some 2 months later (!) at Bristol Motor Speedway, of all places.

She also dives into her entrepreneurial success as an owner of Burn Boot Camp franchises, how it may have helped save her life, what she'd still like to accomplish in her career and more.

Davey also discusses Kyle Larson's dominant Bristol win and the ensuing industry reaction to the performance, previews Kansas to kick off the Cup Series Round of 12 and Papa Segal pays homage to "Big Daddy" Don Garlits.

Fresh off his first win as a NASCAR national series crew chief, Andrew Overstreet joins Davey Segal (7:30) to debrief and discuss the JR Motorsports No. 88 teams dominant win at Watkins Glen and Connor Zilisch's masterclass of a debut. He explains how he was in awe of Zilisch going quicker when asked to back off, his poise to withstand a chaotic finish and what his potential is moving forward.

He also discusses Carson Kvapil's limited starts in the No. 88 this year, his time at JR Motorsports over the last several years and how it compares to his various stops along the way, working at Hendrick Motorsports while in college under Chad Knaus with Greg Ives, how simulation implementation was in the early/mid 2000s, climbing the ladder to a race engineer and more.

Plus, his friendship with Ryan Blaney that was forged at Penske and the Wood Brothers, his Petty fandom as a child that helped accelerate his professional career, how a middle school science teacher helped give him the push to pursue motorsports as a career, stories from his win with Nelson Piquet Jr. at Michigan in the Truck Series, working alongside his brother, Tyler, in the sport, what his 2025 plans may look like and trying to go back-to-back with Dale Earnhardt Jr. back in the seat this weekend at Bristol.

Davey also discusses Chris Buescher's win at Watkins Glen, the playoff leaderboard heading into Bristol to end the Round of 16 and Papa Segal pays homage to an iconic site of many land speed records.

Josh Berry joins Davey Segal this week (5:00) ahead of his final 9 races with Stewart-Haas Racing before joining Wood Brothers Racing in 2025. The two discuss the Rookie of the Year chase, his recent wild ride at Daytona, the wind array of sponsors and paint schemes in 2024 and when he got the news about SHR closing.

Berry explains why he and the team felt a bit free once the news was officially out in the open, how the deal with WBR came about for next year, balancing the task at hand while also looking ahead, racing for KHI, a Taylor Swift question (duh) and preview of Watkins Glen International this weekend.

Davey also discusses Joey Logano's Atlanta win, previews The Glen and Papa Segal pays homage to an eye in the sky mentioned on last week's show.

Ahead of his home race, Garrett Smithley (6:05) joins Davey Segal to discuss his new sponsor and what it's like racing at home with friends and family in attendance. It'll be his third race of 2024 with Alpha Prime Racing, but Smithley explains why it's felt like way more and his longstanding relationship with team owner Tommy Joe Martins.

He also dives into the troubles Johnny Davis and JD Motorsports have been dealing with in 2024 and his own up and down journey as a race car driver, starting in high school in bandoleros and eventually landing him in the Cup Series. He explains how the Richard Petty driver search and a candid conversation Ken Schrader had with his parents that helped embark him on his racing journey and more.

Davey also discusses Chase Briscoe's upset win in the Southern 500 to vault him into the postseason, previews the final 10 races and 16-driver playoff field and Papa Segal pays homage to a name synonymous with The Lady in Black.

West Virginia's finest, Jason Toy, joins Davey Segal this week (7:15) to discuss his 26+ years working for the Motor Racing Network in conjunction with his "day job" at Big Buck Country in West Virginia. He reminisces on his early days at MRN, learning from legends and how growing up in Florida led him to Marshall University, where he's been ever since. Davey also discusses Harrison Burton's upset win at Daytona and explains why he's a worthy playoff contender, previews Darlington and Papa Segal pays homage to a Truck Series legend.

Matt Swiderski, the man affectionately known as "Squid" joins Davey Segal (7:40) to discuss his intriguing career that has spanned motorsports and aerospace. He explains why and how Daniel Suárez and the No. 99 team have turned a corner and flipped a switch ahead of the playoffs, why they were experimenting throughout the spring and summer and reflects on the option tire used at Richmond.

Squid dives into his background in racing growing up in the midwest, working on street stocks and super late models in and around Chicago and how he wound up being a first-generation racer before getting hired at Richard Childress Racing after college as a data acquisition engineer. He explains what the role entailed, winning a then Busch Series title in 2007 with Clint Bowyer, working with Kevin Harvick, Casey Mears and others before making a career change.

Swiderski explains why he opted to leave motorsports for a job at SpaceX, how his skillset transitioned to aerospace and his one-on-one interview with, you guessed it, Elon Musk. But his time there was short-lived, and he explains why racing was calling him back home to Welcome, North Carolina and RCR just 8 months later.

He discusses his eventual rise to the crew chief role, why he was never dead set on pursuing that full-time, but once he got a taste he wanted more of it, stops along the way at Team Penske and Kaulig Racing, the recruitment process to Trackhouse, an ironic story of when he interviewed for the No. 99 crew chief position the first time, the culture at the team being similar to SpaceX, what he's learned in his 100+ Cup races as a shot caller, his realistic expectations ahead of his first playoffs and more.

Davey also touches on Tyler Reddick's Michigan win, previews Daytona and Papa Segal pays homage to a NASCAR pioneer.

Chris Wilner joins Davey Segal (5:40) to discuss NASCAR's penalties handed down after Richmond Raceway and whether the sanctioning body got it right or not. They also discuss Wilner's diverse background in motorsports and how his preparation and execution differs from television to radio, sports cars to NASCAR, etc. He also reminisces on his first time working for the Motor Racing Network, growing up in Indianapolis with Dillon Welch, discusses his desire to cover an Indianapolis 500 and more.

Davey dives further into the penalties announced to Austin Dillon and Joey Logano from Richmond, previews Michigan and Papa Segal pays homage to Fred Lorenzen.

Richmond Raceway track president Lori Collier Waran joins Davey Segal (7:20) ahead of NASCAR's return to racing after the Olympic break in the commonwealth. She dives into how hospitality remains a constant in her career, even in NASCAR, and her time growing up in Richmond attending races before it all came full circle in 2022.

She also explains why she didn't think she was fit for the job when NASCAR recruited her for the vacant position, how she had to figure out what the role of a track president really was, the pride she takes in being the first female track president in 76 years at Richmond, remembering the hectic first race weekend less than a month into the job and more, including how a night race weekend differs from a day one, what the future of Richmond Raceway may look like and the potential to seal the track again.

Davey also previews the upcoming weekend with the Goodyear option tire after the Olympic break and Papa Segal pays homage to Alan Kulwicki.