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NASCAR K&N Pro Series East prepares to take green flag on 2018 season

The season opener for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East highlights nine nights of short track racing at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway.

Tim Southers

Edited: Feb 10, 2018, 2:07 AM

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Hailie Deegan

Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton

Tyler Dippel

Ruben Garcia Jr.

Chase Cabre

Dillon Bassett

Ronnie Bassett

After winning the championship last season, Harrison Burton will compete part-time this year and in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. That means there will be a new champion in NASCAR’s top developmental series in 2018.

Although he won’t be competing for the title this year, Burton will be joined in the race Sunday night by two-time back-to-back K&N Pro Series West champion Todd Gilliland and defending NASCAR PEAK Mexico Series champion Abraham Calderon.

One driver making her NASCAR K&N Pro Series debut is Hailie Deegan. Deegan will lead a trio of drivers from Bill McAnally Racing in the season opener on Sunday.

Derek Kraus will be embarking on his second year of competition with BMR in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series and Cole Rouse who’ll be making his first race with BMR as he returns to the K&N Pro Series, where he competed in the West division in 2016.

Kraus finished third a year ago at New Smyrna. He went on to compete in the West, where he won the rookie title and finished third in the overall championship standings.

Kraus takes the seat vacated by Gilliland while Rouse, a 20-year-old from Fort Smith, Ark. – will be making his first start in the East. He notched four top-five and 12 top-10 finishes while finishing eighth in the championship standings as a rookie in the West in 2016.

Deegan, a member of the NASCAR Next program that spotlights rising stars, is a 16-year-old from Temecula, Calif., that has won multiple championships in off-road racing – where she began racing at the age of 8.

The entry list also includes another NASCAR Next driver Chase Cabre, as well as program alums Ruben Garcia Jr., Tyler Dippel, Brandon McReynolds and Spencer Davis.

Complete Pre-entry List

  Car No. Driver Owner Car Crew Chief Sponsor 2   Ryan Vargas   Max Siegel Toyota   Matt Bucher   UTI / NTI 4   Ronnie Bassett, Jr.   Ronnie Bassett Sr. Toyota   Kris Bowen   Bassett Gutters and More Inc. 4   Chase Cabre   Max Siegel Toyota   Mark Green   Honda Generators / Baille 5   Juan Migual Gonzalez   Jen Brown Toyota   Kase Kallenbach   Nextgen Motorsports / Illux 6   Ruben Garcia, Jr.   Max Siegel Toyota   Steve Plattenberger   HDI 8   John Wood   Mike Holleran Chevrolet   TBA   Idaho 208 Kart 10   Matt Levin   Jody Levin Chevrolet   Ron Norman   Nextgen Motorsports 12   Harrison Burton   Matthew Miller Toyota   Shane Huffman   DEX Imaging 16   Derek Kraus   Mike Curb Toyota   John Camiller   NAPA Auto Parts / Curb Records 17   Tyler Ankrum   David Gilliland Toyota   Seth Smith   Modern Meat Company 19   Hailie Deegan   Bill McAnally Toyota   Joe Draper   Mobil 1 / NAPA Power Premium Plus 20   Anthony Sergi   Ben Kennedy Toyota   Glenn Garrison   TBA 23   J.P. Morgan   JP Morgan Chevrolet   James Beck   TBA 30   Tyler Dippel   Mark Rette Ford   Mark Rette   TyCar 31   Jimmy Zacharias   Ted Marsh Chevrolet   Todd Fisette   Whelen / Mistar Basement 32   Salvatore Iovino   Sue McCarty Chevrolet   TBA   Raceway Wireless / Finalfex / Denrich Apparel 34   Kody Vanderwal   John Wood Toyota   Jason Dickenson   Biltrite Signs / LaSalle Oil 36   Jesse Iwuji   Shawne Merriman Chevrolet   Mike Holleran   Perfection Hydration / Lights Out 39   Andrew Tuttle   Kevin McCarty Toyota   CJ Turnbough   The Ranch / Ride for 22 40   Anthony Alfredo   Mark McFarland Toyota   Robert Huffman   Ceco Building Systems 43   Joe Graf, Jr.   David Calabrese Toyota   Ron Otto   TBA 44   Dillon Bassett   Ronnie Bassett Sr. Ford   Skip Eyler   Bassett Gutters and More Inc. 51   Brandon Oakley   Thomas Oakley Ford   Gary Estes   Oakley Blacktop 54   Todd Gilliland   David Gilliland Toyota   Marcus Richmond   Frontline Enterprises 55   Abraham Calderon   Carlos Crespo Toyota   Wayne Setterington Jr.   PEAK / Nextgen Motorsports 74   Brandon McReynolds   Marie Benevento-Visconti Chevrolet   Doug Chouinard   IGA Food Markets 82   Spencer Davis   Danny Watts Jr. Chevrolet   Jerry Babb   Danny's 87   Chuck Buchanan, Jr.   Charles Buchanan Jr. Ford   Craig Wood   Spring Drug 99   Cole Rouse   Bill McAnally Toyota   Bryan Tasnady   NAPA Filters

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