Even Bubba Pollard admits he’s still a little surprised.
In a “Bullring Hot Lap” interview with Racing America’s Alan Dietz, Pollard concedes he’s still processing that he will be making a NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Richmond Raceway on March 30.
RELATED: Bubba Pollard Making Xfinity Debut with JR Motorsports at Richmond
“It’s really crazy,” said Pollard. “I don’t know. It happened unexpectedly. I don’t know the words to say, not given up, but I had moved on to the next chapter of my life. To get this call, unexpected, it made it that much better.
“It took me a while to process it because I didn’t know if it was for real or not. People say that, but I really didn’t. It was kind of, this has to work out and this has to fall into place for all of this to happen. I’m thankful it did and thankful to JR Motorsports and Rheem for giving me this opportunity.”
Pollard believes JR Motorsports is a perfect fit for his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut, pointing to Josh Berry’s tenure with the team as well as Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s involvement and passion for short track racing.
“I feel like it’s a good fit for me at JR Motorsports. Everything with Josh Berry and what Dale Jr. does for short track racing with the CARS Tour and where it’s headed, I think it’s big for short track racing. I’m just very thankful and I have a lot of respect for those guys.”
The Georgia driver also admits he feels some pressure to perform well at Richmond, both as a representative of the short track world and driving for one of the top teams in the Xfinity Series. However, he hopes to savor the opportunity and not put too much pressure on himself.
“The pressure is definitely there, because Josh performed and got where he needed to be. We’ve just got to go out there and have fun. That’s my biggest thing. This may be a one-time deal for me.
“Try not to put pressure on yourself because I do want to show people what you’re capable of doing. It doesn’t matter if it’s Xfinity racing or short track racing, you want to give 100 percent. I’m trying to do all my homework and put in the work to do whatever it takes to make this deal happen and run good.”
Before making the trip to Richmond, Pollard will compete in the ARCA Menards Series East event at Five Flags Speedway on March 23.
Between that and Super Late Model races such as the UARA National Tour’s Rattler 250 at South Alabama Speedway on March 17 and the Sunshine State 200 with the ASA STARS National Tour at Five Flags on the same weekend as the ARCA race, the next few weeks will be very busy.
“We’re also going to run the ARCA race in Five Flags Speedway here in a couple of weeks in preparation for the Richmond race. With the help of James Finch and a lot of the guys at JR Motorsports leading me in the right direction, we’re going to be able to do that.
“The next couple of weeks are going to be super busy with the Rattler, Five Flags and then Richmond. We’ve got to put a lot of effort in, the guys at the shop are going to work hard, and we’ll see if we can get it done.”
-Image courtesy of Will Bellamy, Racing America
