As with any road course race, the NASCAR Xfinity Series‘ 4 June date at Portland International Raceway will see some new faces. On Wednesday, DGM Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing separately announced the NASCAR débuts of Mason Filippi and Connor Mosack, respectively.
Filippi will drive the #91 Chevrolet Camaro. The 24-year-old arrives in NASCAR with plenty of sports car racing experience, having previously competed in the Pirelli World Challenge before moving to the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge in 2019. Currently racing in the MPC TCR class for Bryan Herta Autosport, he has three career wins and finished runner-up in the 2019 standings.
Four races into the 2022 Michelin Pilot Challenge, Filippi and co-driver Tyler Maxson are eleventh in points with a best finish of seventh at Laguna Seca. The duo opend the season with poles at Daytona and Sebring.
“I’m thrilled to get behind the wheel of a Xfinity car and see what I can do on the track with DGM Racing,” said Filippi. “I’ve raced in Portland before and can’t wait to go back with a new challenge.”
In 2019, Filippi finished on the podium in both TC America Series races at Portland, winning the first from the pole and placing third in the second. The win was one of six that year as he ended third in the championship despite missing three rounds.
While the #91 is mainly being filled by Mason Massey, he stepped aside for the first road race at Circuit of the Americas in March, where Preston Pardus piloted the car to a fourteenth.
“I had a great time meeting Mason and learning more about his racing career at the shop this week,” commented DGM owner Mario Gosselin. “Mason brings diverse experience and road course racing knowledge that will serve him well in the Xfinity series. I admire his approach and his attitude toward the upcoming race in Portland, and I believe it will lead to a successful weekend. We’re excited to have him behind the wheel of the #91.”
Meanwhile, JGR picks up Mosack, who races in the Trans-Am Series‘ TA2 class for Team SLR, to drive the #18 Toyota Supra TRD. His first full campaign in the series in 2021 ended with a third-place points finish and a win at Watkins Glen.
While he mainly focuses on Trans-Am, he grew up in late models which included being a member of fellow Xfinity rival JR Motorsports. Mosack has also made sporadic starts in the ARCA Menards Series and its two regional divisions since 2021. After recording a best run of eleventh in three 2021 ARCA starts for Young’s Motorsports, he is two-for-two in top tens with Bret Holmes Racing this year.
“Our Xfinity Series programme was designed to provide opportunities to race car drivers like Connor who are looking to expand their careers by challenging themselves in a very competitive racing series,” commented JGR Xfinity Executive Vice President Steve DeSouza. “Connor has accomplished quite a bit in a relatively short period of time in Trans Am and we’re proud to help further his development in NASCAR.”
The #18 serves as JGR’s multi-driver car, with Drew Dollar, Trevor Bayne, Ryan Truex, Bubba Wallace, and John Hunter Nemechek making starts. The entry sits twelfth in owner points with a best finish of second courtesy of Nemechek at Richmond after being moved by team-mate Ty Gibbs for the win, while Wallace placed twenty-eighth at COTA after suffering a transmission problem.
Portland is a new track for the Xfinity Series.
