Race 16 of 33: Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway
Track Specs: 1.5-mile oval / 200 laps
Weather: Partly Cloudy; 79 degrees
Race Winner: Kyle Busch
Sadler’s finish: 6th
Allgaier’s finish: 31st
Custer’s Finish: 32nd
Elliott Sadler and the No. 1 OneMain Chevrolet brought home a sixth place finish after battling changing conditions throughout the Alsco 300. Sadler remains second in the NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) point standings, only nine markers behind Daniel Suarez.
The Virginia native started Friday night’s race fifth and gained one position by lap 2. Six laps into the 300-mile race, Sadler reported that his Chevrolet was tight in both corners. After passing Suarez on lap 12 for the third position, Sadler radioed back to the team that he was tight back to the gas but liked his entry.
When the competition caution was shown on lap 25, Sadler brought his OneMain Chevrolet to pit road for two tires and fuel. The OneMain machine restarted second on the high side, but on the restart lost three positions and Sadler radioed to the team that he brushed the fence and asked them to look for right-side damage. The team reported that there wasn’t any smoke on the right side and the car looked clean.
On lap 39, Sadler called into the team to report that he was free into Turn 1 and 3, but tight off each corner. The OneMain Chevrolet was scored in the fifth position when the caution flag waved on lap 54. When pit road was open, Sadler brought his machine to the attention of the crew for two tires and fuel.
Sadler and teammate Justin Allgaier battled for position on lap 70, and on lap 71 the OneMain Chevrolet was scored in the sixth position. On lap 107, Sadler came to pit road for the first four-tire stop of the night. With 86 laps remaining in the 200-lap race, the No. 1 Chevy was running in the seventh position. Sadler reported on lap 132 that he was using his right rear too much and on lap 145 he reported that his Chevrolet was tight rolling the center.
With 43 laps to go, the OneMain Chevrolet came to pit road for four tires, fuel and a half round into the left rear. The caution flag waved 11 laps later and Sadler reported that his Chevy was pretty good, but a little tight. On lap 170, Sadler visited pit road for the final time of the night for four tires, fuel and added tape to the grille.
The OneMain Chevrolet was scored in the fourth position with 20 laps remaining. When the caution flag waved with four laps to go, the OneMain team was in position for a top-five finish. As drivers were fighting to the finish, Sadler got shuffled back and finished in the sixth position.
Kyle Busch claimed the victory and was followed by Austin Dillon, Suarez, Erik Jones and fifth-place Darrell Wallace Jr.
Elliott Sadler, driver No. 1 OneMain Chevrolet team
“Overall, we had a very fast car. We got into the fence a little on a restart, but this OneMain team fixed it. At the end, we were in the wrong lane and it is tough to make the outside work on restarts.”
Justin Allgaier
Justin Allgaier and the TaxSlayer.com/VisitMyrtleBeach.com team had a car capable of competing for a top-10 finish on Friday night at Kentucky Speedway, but repairs for a broken drive plate relegated them to a 31st-place result.
Starting the race in 13th, Allgaier moved up to 12th by lap 10 and radioed shortly after that his car was really good. When the competition caution waved on lap 25, the Illinois native relayed to crew chief Jason Burdett that his Chevrolet was a little tight early into Turn 1 and really good in Turns 3 and 4. The team opted to pit for two tires and fuel, gaining two spots to restart 10th on lap 32.
When the green flag dropped, Allgaier got a good run and moved up to seventh on lap 33. He remained there until the No. 12 of Ryan Blaney got by on lap 50. Shortly after, he notified the team that the No. 7 Camaro was tight in Turns 1 and 2 and really good in Turns 3 and 4. The second caution of the race came out on lap 54 and team made a fast pit stop for two tires and fuel.
The quick stop allowed Allgaier to move up to fourth for the restart on lap 58. Allgaier’s Chevy was really tight early in the run, especially in 1 and 2. On lap 80, the 30-year-old was running 10th and just one lap later reported a vibration on the car. The team was ready in case he needed to hit pit road, but Allgaier was able to stay out until a scheduled green-flag stop with 92 to go. The team pitted for four tires and fuel and upon getting back on the track, Allgaier radioed that there was a problem with the axle. Burdett had Allgaier head straight to the garage for a quick repair for a broken drive plate.
Allgaier reemerged on the track 20 laps down in 31st place. The No. 7 Chevy was still fast and Allgaier managed to get a lap back as the laps wound down, but was unable to advance any positions and had to settle for an uncharacteristic 31st-place finish.
Kyle Busch won the Alsco 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race and was followed by Austin Dillon, Daniel Suarez, Erik Jones and fifth-place Darrell Wallace Jr.
Allgaier now sits sixth in NXS points, 65 markers behind the leader.
Justin Allgaier, driver No. 7 TaxSlayer.com/VisitMyrtleBeach.com team
“Unfortunately the drive plate that goes on the left rear axle broke after a green-flag pit stop. It was really frustrating, we had a really good car. We had good track position there. The pit crew did a really good job and Jason Burdett made a lot of great calls. Our Taxslayer.com/VisitMyrtleBeach.com Chevy was really good. I felt like we had found what we needed to find to compete for a top-five finish and unfortunately the circumstances took us out of that tonight.”
Cole Custer
A collision on pit road just 56 laps into the Alsco 300 on Friday night ruined Cole Custer’s night, and after a significant amount of time spent in the garage making the Jack Link’s Chevrolet race-worthy again, Custer raced to a 32nd-place finish at Kentucky Speedway.
Custer had qualified eighth earlier in the day and started the race well, maintaining eighth position despite fighting both loose and tight conditions early in the run. He was ninth when the competition caution waved at lap 25, and came down for two tires and an air pressure adjustment. On the ensuing restart, the car tightened up and Custer fell back to 11th, settling in to let the car get better.
A debris caution on lap 54 set the stage for the night to go sideways. After taking two tires and a track bar adjustment, Custer left his pit and accelerated, only to have the car driven by Alex Guenette turn down into his pit stall as he was passing. The contact did significant damage to the right front of the Jack Link’s Chevrolet, and Custer was forced to back up and head for the garage. When the team arrived, it found a broken upper control arm, power-steering unit and shock absorber, as well as body damage.
The Dave Elenz-led team went right to work fixing the damage, and Custer returned to the track 62 laps down on lap 118. From there, he raced the final 82 laps to finish 32nd. In just three career starts, it was Custer’s worst finish. His two previous finishes were fifth and sixth.
Kyle Busch won the race, followed by Austin Dillon, Daniel Suarez and Bubba Wallace. JRM teammate Elliott Sadler finished sixth.
Cole Custer, driver No. 88 Jack Link’s team
“I think we had a pretty solid Jack Link’s/Cessna Chevy. I wish I could have seen that guy coming, but I couldn’t see out the right side. I think up to that point we were a top-10 car, maybe even a top-five car when it got to the end. It’s just a shame, but we had some decent speed and something to be proud of. I got a lot of practice and a lot of racing at this place, and I definitely felt a lot more comfortable with it.”
JRM Press Release.
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