American Racing

SST: Greg Biffle returns to racing at Road America in series debut

Credit: Robby Gordon

After over a year away from national motorsports, NASCAR champion Greg Biffle has officially found himself behind the wheel of a racing vehicle once again as he has joined the SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks.

The announcement comes a day after participating in a test session at SST headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina on Tuesday, driving fellow NASCAR driver Casey Mears’ truck. On Wednesday afternoon, the series released the entry list to confirm Biffle’s spot on the 12-driver grid for Friday and Saturday’s races at Road America.

Biffle tweeted, “Finally ready to get back to racing this weekend @RoadAmerica @SSuperTrucks I’m happy I can Focus on Racing again !!! #cantwaittocomeback”.

He will drive the #25 truck. Usually driven by Arie Luyendyk Jr., the two-time SST race winner is unable to compete in the Road America weekend due to scheduling conflicts, leaving the #25 open. Under SST rules, a driver can have a substitute take over his/her truck provided they use the same number as the original driver; all points earned by the replacement may be transferred to the original driver. A similar strategy was used by 2017 champion Paul Morris at the season finale in Lake Elsinore, when he elected to have Jerett Brooks drive his #67 and earn points for him.

On the Road America entry list, Adam Andretti is listed as being in the #1 rather than Morris, suggesting something may have arisen to prevent Morris from competing.

Biffle is a longtime veteran in NASCAR. He spent 15 seasons driving the #16 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing in what is now known as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (2002 to 2016), winning 19 races and recording a best points finish of second in 2005. His last win in NASCAR’s top series came in 2013 at Michigan International Speedway, also the 1,000th Cup victory for Ford Motor Company. After a 23rd-place finish in the 2016 standings, he parted ways with Roush. His latest Cup start is a 17th-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The Vancouver, Washington native is one of three drivers to have championships in NASCAR’s two feeder national series – the Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series – along with Johnny Benson and Austin Dillon. Biffle won his Truck title in 2000 and an Xfinity (then Busch) championship in 2002; with 16 Truck and 20 Xfinity wins, he is also one of 29 drivers who have won at least one race in each of NASCAR’s three national series.

Credit: Nascar1996

“Greg Biffle had a great test,” the SST Twitter account posted, “[H]as over 50 wins combined in top 3 @NASCAR series! It shouldn’t take too long to knock the rust off”.

Biffle won’t be the only NASCAR face in the field, let alone the only series newcomer. Along with series founder Robby Gordon, Mears will make his return to the series for the first time since the Lake Elsinore round in 2017. In two races at the baseball park, Mears failed to qualify for the first Feature and finished fifth in the second. He will pilot the #57 UFD Racing truck, usually driven by 2018 Lake Elsinore winner Bill Hynes.

“Filling in for @thethrill57 at @roadamerica this weekend in the @ssupertrucks series,” Mears posted on Instagram. “Can’t wait! Thank you Bill for the opportunity.”

In addition to Biffle, Tommy Dawson will also be making his SST debut, driving the #88 RedSpins truck.

With SST serving as a support to the Xfinity Series at Road America, many faces in the NASCAR garage have voiced their excitement for the trucks. In regards to Biffle’s news, former driver and current NBC analyst Dale Earnhardt Jr. tweeted, “The Biff back behind the wheel this weekend.” In response, the SST Twitter invited the 15-time Most Popular Driver winner to a test.

Racing will take place on Friday and Saturday before final Xfinity practice and the Xfinity race, respectively.

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