McCumbee Earns Career-Best Road Course Finish at New Jersey Motorsports Park
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (May 23, 2011) — Chad McCumbee is a proven racer, but the No.1 ModSpace Ford Fusion driver wants to be known for being more than a one trick pony.
A third-place finish at New Jersey Motorsports Park in Sunday’s ModSpace 150 was another step in doing just that.
It was no secret that McCumbee wasn’t a road course “ringer,” especially with just one career start turning both left and right. However, McCumbee proved Sunday he could adapt quickly – and drive the No. 1 ModSpace Ford Fusion even quicker – with an impressive third-place finish.
“Obviously, I am a big fan of road racing now,” McCumbee said. “It was an educational race, and when you are racing with those road course guys that do it week-in and week-out, I thought I learned more and more as the race went on. We had everything we needed, and everything went right for us.”
He finished 17th a year ago at New Jersey in his only other road course start.
The 26-year old was in the mix at the front of the field, running inside the top-five all day in the 67-lap race. His Andy Belmont Racing team qualified fifth, but McCumbee had to fight through the field the team had opted to gamble early on pit strategy.
“It was truly a flawless day,” Andy Belmont, the team manager said. “Our No. 1 ModSpace Ford got out run by two road course guys, which is something to take into consideration. Only a year ago, Chad was running his very first road course race, never turning right before. It was pretty phenomenal day. He looked like he knew what he was doing.”
The Supply, N.C., native proved to have one of the best race cars all weekend, qualifying fifth at 97.801 mph.
Shortly after the green flag dropped, McCumbee moved into second place until Lap 17. The team skipped the first round of pit stops during an early caution, opting to stop on Lap 31 with fresh tires, fuel, track bar adjustment and an air pressure adjustment. He returned to the 2.25-mile Thunderbolt Raceway in 12th position.
McCumbee methodically moved to the front during the middle of the race. He was back in the top five by Lap 35.
At the end, McCumbee couldn’t do anything with the road course “ringers” ahead of him. His third-place finish was the third top 10 run in a row for his ABR team. In all, McCumbee has four top-10 finishes this year.
“Chad McCumbee and the entire Andy Belmont Racing team did a spectacular job at New Jersey Motorsports Park,” William Mann, the director of motorsports for ModSpace, said. “ModSpace headquarters is located in nearby Berwyn (Pa.), so we had a lot of our employees at the track cheering for Chad. The podium finish made all of our employees proud of our racing program. We are confident that will see more top-three finishes from Chad with the No. 1 ModSpace team.”
McCumbee is looking forward to the next race following his first podium finish of the season.
“It gives you momentum, and good momentum is so important in every aspect in anything you do in life,” McCumbee said. “Now we finally have that. We have had a solid string of top-10s, and I think that is something to be proud of. When you start doing things like that, things just flow. It is never easy to do any of this and have these consistent finishes, but what makes it easier is when you are able to gain a little bit of momentum on your side.”
With the finish, McCumbee moved the No. 1 ModSpace team into fifth place in the ARCA Racing Series driver standings.
The No.1 ModSpace Ford Fusion will be back in action on Saturday, June 4, in the Messina Wildlife Animal Stopper 150 at Chicagoland Speedway.
For more information on ModSpace, visit www.modspace.com.
About ModSpace:
Modular Space Corporation (ModSpace), based in Berwyn, Pa., is a leading provider of modular buildings, portable storage and services for temporary and permanent space needs. With more than 40 years of experience, ModSpace serves a diverse set of customers and markets through a network of 80 branches throughout the United States and Canada. www.modspace.com
About Andy Belmont Racing:
Andy Belmont Racing (ABR) is a competitive and respected motorsports operation who fields race cars in the ARCA Racing Series, NASCAR Truck Series, the NASCAR East Series and the USARacing Pro Cup Series. ABR has been serving the motorsports community and winning for nearly 25 years. www.AndyBelmont.com
