| Race: CRC Brakleen 175 (70 laps / 175 miles) | Race 14 of 23 Track: Pocono Raceway Location: Long Pond, Pennsylvania Date & Time: Friday, July 12th | 5:30 PM ET |
| No. 41 DQS Solutions & Staffing Chevrolet Silverado RST Driver: Bayley Currey | Crew Chief: Cody Efaw |
| Start: 20th Stage 1: 32nd Stage 2: 22nd Finish: 17th Driver Points: 18th Owner Points: 22nd |
| – Key Takeaway: As rain washed away the Pocono qualifying session, Bayley Currey would start mid-pack in 20th position. On the first lap of the race, contact with the left rear tire forced the No. 41 Chevy to pit, resulting in a 32nd-place run in stage one. Currey rose to 22nd in stage two, and made up a handful of positions to finish in 17th. – Bayley Currey’s Post-Race Thoughts: “Lackluster day for sure, we had a solid truck but got hit in the left rear on lap one. I came down pit road with it smoking real bad in the corners and thought the tire was going down. That put us behind all day. I was trying to fight for track position and make up spots on pit road, but it was tough. We came down at the end and put some tires on it to salvage a decent top-20 finish. I was hoping for a top-15; it was there, but I just didn’t capitalize enough in the last corner. But, that’s automobile racing, I guess. It seems like everything that can happen will happen to us, but the truck came home pretty straight. When we got out front, it handled really well and we were running as fast as the leader. It was just hard to keep track position. Big thanks to DQS, Masked Owl Technologies, AutoVentive, Precision, and everyone on our No. 41 Chevy team.” |
| No. 42 J.F. Electric / Utilitra Chevrolet Silverado RST Driver: Matt Mills | Crew Chief: Jon Leonard |
| Start: 13th Stage 1: 13th Stage 2: 10th Finish: 11th Driver Points: 21st Owner Points: 25th |
| – Key Takeaway: Thanks to his top-10 finish at Nashville, Matt Mills would start the highest of the Niece Motorsports drivers in 13th after qualifying was canceled. Mills showed promise throughout the race as he gained confidence in his truck. Following a 13th-place run in stage one, Mills climbed to 10th in stage two to pick up a point. Before the red flags came out for rain, the No. 42 was slated to finish sixth, but ultimately dropped to eleventh. Still, a solid showing for the team. – Matt Mills’ Post-Race Thoughts: “Overall, it was a good day for us. It was a nice change to start up front with that track position. We just fired off a bit loose and built tight throughout the race. Jon (Leonard) made some good calls to keep us in track position. I thought we still had a good truck even with it getting tight. I learned a lot today manipulating the air, but didn’t learn enough by the end there. I cost us a couple of spots just trying to be greedy and making aggressive moves, but overall, I learned a lot. It’s another good day, we have another clean J.F. Electric/Utilita Chevy, and we built up a pretty good notebook for next year.” |
| No. 45 Mar-Del Watermelon Association Chevrolet Silverado RST Driver: Ross Chastain | Crew Chief: Phil Gould |
| Start: 27th Stage 1: 16th Stage 2: 7th Finish: 5th Driver Points: N/A Owner Points: 10th |
| – Key Takeaway: By virtue of the qualifying metric, Ross Chastain started the deepest in the field of the Niece Motorsports drivers in 27th position. He did not stay there for long, however, as he made quick work early on to pick up track position. A 16th-place finish in stage one propelled him to a seventh-place run in stage two, enabling Chastain to fight for the win in the closing laps of the race. With just a handful of laps to go, his truck began to stumble, but held on following both red flags to come home with a top-five finish. – Ross Chastain’s Post-Race Thoughts: Interviewer: You had some issues on your truck there at the end. On the restart, were the issues still there?“No, it made it! I’m happy. I mean, we gave up one spot, I didn’t get attached to the No. 19 well, so I didn’t give him the push he deserved. I got to him too late with the No. 77 pushing me and knocked our nose in. For all things considered, I’m happy with fifth. Our Mar-Del Watermelon Association Silverado was fast today, and it’s always fun to race these trucks for Al (Niece), Cody (Efaw), and Phil (Gould).” |
