Derek Kraus is ready to take on a new experience when he controls a Cup car for the first time, but he will not let that distract him from the business at hand – helping AJ Allmendinger contend for a playoff spot.
The 21-year-old Kraus will complete his first laps in a Cup Series car on Saturday as he practices and qualifies for Kaulig Racing. He will take on this role while Allmendinger will compete in the Xfinity Series race at Road America (3 p.m. ET on NBC).
Allmendinger is 17th in the Cup standings. He is 17 points below the playoff cutline with five races remaining in the regular season. Kraus qualifying means that Allmendinger will have to start from the rear of the field as he continues to pursue points.
This driver swap has been in the works for some time. Kraus has taken part in simulator sessions while getting information from both Allmendinger and Chandler Smith, who made his Cup debut at Richmond in the spring. Now the time has come for him to take this work and translate it to the actual Cup car.
”There’s definitely a lot of excitement going into it,” Kraus told NBC Sports. “I probably won’t be too nervous until we get there and five minutes before, but I feel like once I get in, I’ll be able to just calm down and just go do what I do.
“In every racer, there’s a side of them that wants to go fast. But I also have a job that I have to go do — just make sure everything runs right and there’s no issues with the car for when AJ gets there on Sunday.”
Kraus already has some experience working in a Cup program. He works with Legacy Motor Club on the simulator, and he has since started working with Kaulig Racing in the same capacity.
The Wisconsin native hasn’t been at the track as much this season after three full-time seasons in the Truck Series with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. He has only made four Xfinity Starts for Kaulig Racing while doing some grassroots racing on the side.
This new role has still helped him build communication with both organizations and learn the key differences between the Xfinity and Cup cars.
“It’s definitely going to be interesting to go there and just feel it out,” Kraus said about Richmond. “And I feel like overall it’ll help personally just because it’ll give me experience in the Cup car that I can take over to sim where I can apply that and make sure that some things are right. And if there’s something wrong, than I can tell them and they can fix it.”
The site of this Cup debut is an interesting choice. Richmond is a track where Kaulig has struggled in the Cup Series with its drivers combining to post an average finish of 24.9 over seven races. Chandler Smith’s 17th-place finish in the spring stands out as the team’s first top 20 at the .75-mile track.
Allmendinger acknowledged these struggles during a media session on Wednesday when asked about his decision to race at Road America instead of practicing and qualifying at Richmond.
“I laugh because me practicing there and helping with the setup hasn’t helped us,” Allmendinger said. “Maybe we give Derek a try and he nails the setup and I get in the car and love it.”
Richmond is also a track where Kraus made his Xfinity Series debut in a Kaulig car after three previous starts in the Truck Series. He finished 10th in the spring in the team’s All-Star car.
“I really enjoy Richmond,” Kraus said. “Out of all the tracks on the schedule, I’d much rather have it be this one where I’m really comfortable. I feel confident going to that race track where I can perform well.”
Comfort aside, the Cup car is significantly different than the cars or trucks that Kraus controlled while making 79 starts across the Xfinity Series and Craftsman Truck Series. Kraus will have pressure on him as he tries to get the No. 16 set up correctly for Allmendinger. He will also have confidence fostered by the leadership at Kaulig Racing.
“I used to have a lot of pressure on me, getting told, ‘Don’t wreck it. Don’t wreck it.’ Going this year with Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice, I was the one putting pressure on myself more than anybody.
“I remember the first race in Richmond — there’s no practice or qualifying — and Chris came up to my window before the race. He’s like, ‘Hey, there’s no pressure. You don’t got nothing to worry about. Just go out there and do your thing.’”
Kraus sees a correlation between this pre-race talk from Rice and his 10th-place finish at Richmond. He had less pressure, so he was able to go out on the track and just perform. Now he will aim to repeat this feat, albeit in a different role.
Kraus will first control the No. 16 Chevrolet during practice on Saturday at 12:35 p.m. ET. He will then complete single-car qualifying at 1:20 p.m. ET. USA Network will broadcast both sessions.
