Noah Gragson Throws Light on His Mindset After Signing New Deal at JR Motorsports

Noah Gragson recently signed a new deal at JR Motorsports that keeps him in the team for the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series season. The youngster is already heading to the playoffs with two race wins this season. During the announcement of the deal, the team’s co-owner Kelly Earnhardt also hinted at a possible Cup Series role in the future for Noah Gragson.

While the new deal secures his future with the team, it does not change much for the 22-year-old. He dismissed doubts that the uncertainty of next season was a distraction for him. The deal does not make the upcoming races any easier or tougher, believes Gragson.

Noah Gragson throws light on his mindset after signing new deal

“I don’t think it will be any easier, but I don’t think it will be any harder. Because I didn’t really feel like next year’s deal was a distraction before we signed it,” Gragson said during a media interaction.

He went on to say that he tries not to think about such things when on the race track. His aim on the race track is to be a ‘walking highlight reel’.

“It wasn’t a thought really in my mind what I’m doing next year. I just go out there on the race track, and really just, try to be a walking highlight reel,” Gragson continued. “I try to make some bold moves and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. At the end of the day I try my best,” he added.

No distractions when on the race-track

He confidently expressed that the contract was not a distraction for him in any way. “I don’t really think it affected the way I drove or the results or anything. It wasn’t really much of a distraction. I feel like if it was a distraction, it’d be different. But it wasn’t a distraction at all for me,” Gragson informed.

His first win this season came in the season-opening race of the Xfinity Series at the Daytona International Speedway. A second win then came at the Bristol Motor Speedway in June. Noah Gragson currently lies in fourth place in the Xfinity Series standings but is third in the playoff standings.