BMR Drivers Start Year Strong in NASCAR K&N East Season Opener
Two Bill McAnally Racing drivers got a great start to their 2018 campaign on Sunday night, as the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East kicked off its season as part of NASCAR’s Speedweeks in Florida.
Cole Rouse grabbed a runner-up finish, while Derek Kraus took fourth at the event at New Smyrna Speedway.
Rouse was making his first start for BMR in the No. 99 NAPA Filters Toyota Camry as he returned to the K&N Pro Series, where he competed in the West division as a rookie in 2016.
Kraus, last year’s Rookie of the Year in the K&N West, was making his first start since taking the seat of BMR’s No. 16 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry.
Rouse ran in third for most of the 175-lap race, with Kraus working his way from seventh to fourth and then challenging his teammate in the second half of the event. Rouse took advantage of a battle between the two lead cars in the final laps, to slip by and grab second coming to the checkered flag, while Kraus took fourth.
Derek Kraus – No. 16 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry
Start / Finish: 7th / 4th
Points Earned: 40
Points Standing / Total: 4th / 40
Next Race: Kern County Raceway Park, Bakersfield, CA, March 15
How to Watch or Listen: NBCSN
Derek Kraus: @derek9kraus
NAPA Racing: @NAPARacing
Bill McAnally Racing: @BMR_NASCAR
Bill McAnally Racing View All
Bill McAnally Racing (BMR) holds the ARCA Menards Series West record with 11 championships and eclipsed the 100-win mark in 2022. The team has piled on six titles in the last eight seasons with four different drivers since 2015. Second-year driver Tanner Reif takes control of the No. 16 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet for the 12-race campaign in 2023 and looks to improve on his runner-up finish in the 2022 drivers’ standings to build on BMR’s west coast legacy.