Derek Kraus Driving Kaulig Racing No. 16 in Cup Series Practice and Qualifying at Richmond
Kraus will pilot the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro during Saturday's on-track activity from Richmond Raceway, as AJ Allmendinger competes in the Xfinity Series event at Road America.
Derek Kraus has been tapped to pilot the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro, owned by Kaulig Racing, in Saturday's NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying sessions from Richmond Raceway.
The 21-year-old will substitute for AJ Allmendinger, the full-time driver of the entry, as he travels to Wisconsin to compete in Saturday's NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Road America, driving the No. 10 for Kaulig Racing.
Saturday's 20-minute practice will mark the first time that Kraus, who does much of Kaulig Racing's work in the simulator, will have on-track laps in the NextGen car.
Kraus, a native of Stratford, Wisconsin, contested four NASCAR Xfinity Series events for Kaulig Racing earlier this year, where he scored a pair of top-10 finishes at Martinsville and Richmond.
From 2020 to 2022, Kraus competed full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, where he scored four top-five finishes, and 26 results inside the top-10 in 74 starts.
As a result of this decision, Allmendinger will return to Richmond Raceway on Sunday, where he'll take the green flag from the rear of the field - regardless of the qualifying result from Kraus on Saturday.
Entering Richmond, the first of five regular-season events remaining for the NASCAR Cup Series, Allmendinger sits 17th in series point standings, just 17 markers behind Michael McDowell for the final spot in the postseason.
Photo Credit: Jim Fluharty, HHP, Courtesy of Chevy Racing
