Todd Gilliland & Riley Herbst to Tackle High Banks of Bristol

ROSEVILLE, Calif. (April 12, 2016) – Bill McAnally Racing drivers Todd Gilliland and Riley Herbst will tackle the high banks of Bristol Motor Speedway when the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East travels to the half-mile track in Tennessee for the PittLite 125 on Saturday.

Gilliland and Herbst, rookies who are racing the full schedule in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West this season, are also competing in select K&N East races.

Bristol will mark their second venture east this year, following their success in the season opener at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway – where Gilliland drove the No. 16 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota to victory and Herbst piloted the No. 19 NOS Energy Drink Toyota to a ninth-place finish in his first K&N Pro Series event.

Both drivers have experienced success between appearances in the East. Gilliland – a 15-year-old from Sherrills Ford, North Carolina – won the first two races this season in the K&N West; giving him four wins in four races in the K&N Pro Series overall. Herbst, 17, of Las Vegas notched one top-five and two top-10 finishes in the two K&N West races.

Drive for 5 🏁 continues Saturday.
Can anyone slow Gilliland’s roll? pic.twitter.com/B2kMgxjezY

— NASCAR Home Tracks (@NASCARHomeTrack) April 12, 2016

Gilliland – who has seen his father, David, compete in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Bristol – looks forward to his opportunity to experience the high banks.

“I’m super excited about it,” he said. “I’ve been there multiple times, watching my dad race. It’s certainly one of my favorite race tracks to watch and be around. The whole atmosphere at that race track is crazy and I look forward to experiences it for myself.”

Herbst expressed similar sentiment.

“I’m very excited, because that is one of the most famous tracks on the NASCAR circuit,” said Herbst, who is coming off a best series finish of fourth at Kern County Raceway Park in California. “I’m excited to go there and get some experience. It’s going to be fast.”

Although the two drivers are not contending for the points title in the K&N East this year, Gilliland says it does not change his strategy for the event.

“I don’t think we approach any race different this year,” he said. “We just try to do the best we can every week. And if you win, that’s the best points day you can have.”

Herbst, meanwhile, says he takes a slightly different approach to the East Coast events.

“Of course you do, but you still want to learn as much as you can,” he said. “You want to go for wins and can take a few more chances and stuff, because there are no points on the line.”

The PittLite 125 is the fourth event on a 14-race schedule this year for the K&N Pro Series East. Bristol Motor Speedway has hosted four series events, beginning in 2012.

The race will be televised on NBCSN at 10 p.m. PT on April 21.