RCR Post Race Report — Chicagoland Speedway
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
RACE: American Ethanol 225
TRACK: Chicagoland Speedway
Race Highlights:
Richard Childress Racing teammates finished second (Brendan Gaughan), 12th (Ty Dillon) and 15th (Joey Coulter).
Dillon ranks second in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver championship point standings, trailing leader Timothy Peters by 23 points, while Coulter ranks eighth in the standings.
The No. 3 Chevrolet team is second in the Camping World Truck Series owner championship point standings, 23 points shy of the No. 17 truck’s lead, with the No. 2 team seventh in the standings and the No. 22 team ninth.
Dillon leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings ahead of Cale Gale.
According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Statistics, Gaughan earned the highest Driver Rating (140.9), Dillon earned a rating of 110.0 ranking him fourth, and Coulter scored a 98.6 placing him seventh amongst the competitors.
Dillon and Gaughan spent 100 percent of the 150-lap affair running in the top 15, while Coulter spent 76.0 percent running in the top 15.
Gaughan earned the series’ best Average Running Position (1.887), while Dillon and Coulter maintained the third (5.380) and seventh (7.789) Average Running Position, respectively.
Combined, the three RCR entries posted the fastest lap of the race for 44 laps, Gaughan earned 24 of those laps, Coulter with 16 laps and Dillon with four laps. Coulter made 70 Green Flag Passes during the 150-lap event ranking him fourth overall.
James Buescher won the American Ethanol 225 and was followed to the finish line by Gaughan, Timothy Peters, Matt Crafton and Parker Kligerman.
The next scheduled Camping World Truck Series race is Pocono Mountains 125 at Pocono Raceway on Saturday, Aug. 4. The 11th race of the 2012 season is scheduled to be televised live on SPEED beginning at 12:30p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on Motor Racing Network beginning at 1 p.m.
Brendan Gaughan Brings Home a Second-Place Finish at Chicagoland Speedway in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
After leading the most laps of the race, Brendan Gaughan and Richard Childress Racing’s No. 2 South Point Hotel & Casino team finished second in Saturday night’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event at Chicagoland Speedway. The Las Vegas native started the American Ethanol 225 from the sixth position and reported early in the event the South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet was becoming increasingly tight. Despite the handling condition, Gaughan continued to gain ground and claimed the lead on lap 13. The Gere Kennon-led pit crew worked on the truck’s handling throughout the course of multiple scheduled two and four-tire and fuel only pit stops throughout the 150-lap event that allowed Gaughan to continue to pace the field. On lap 99 the RCR driver brought the black and yellow Chevrolet down pit road for one final pit stop which included four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. Several teams opted for fuel-only or two-tire pit stops, positioning the No. 2 Chevrolet sixth for the lap-100 restart. As green-flag racing resumed, Gaughan worked his way toward the front regaining the lead with 27 laps remaining in the race. An untimely caution was brought out on lap 137 and, the No. 2 RCR Chevrolet remained on track, retaining the first-place position for the lap 141 restart. Gaughan spun the tires on the restart, causing the South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet to fall back to the fifth position. Gaughan had just taken over the fourth position when the caution flag waved over the field for a final time on lap 145, setting up the field for a green-white-checkered finish. In an attempt to take over the lead, Gaughan made a dash to the front in the final laps but crossed the line in the second position.
Start – 6 Finish – 2 Laps Led – 83 Owner Points – 9
BRENDAN GAUGHAN QUOTE:
“Tonight Richard Childress, Gere Kennon and all of the No. 2 guys gave me a South Point Cheverolet that was capable of taking us to victory lane. There was no truck out there that was going to beat us, unless we beat ourselves, and we did. I spun my tires on the second to last restart and, I gave an opening and that’s what you can’t do. I was lucky we had another chance at the restart, which allowed me the opportunity to get the second-place finish. I’m very thankful for the opportunity Richard (Childress) has given me to drive equipment of this quality. A second-place finish is great, but not when you had a truck like we did, we could have won this race.”
Ty Dillon Earns a 12th-Place Finish at Chicagoland Speedway
Ty Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops team finished 12th in the American Ethanol 225 at Chicagoland Speedway after battling a tight-handling Chevrolet for the majority of the 150-lap affair. Dillon took the green flag from the third position and reported early in the event that the Richard Childress Racing entry was tight in the center of the corners. The Welcome, N.C., native was scored in the seventh position at the halfway point of the event when Richmond called the Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet was called to pit road for fuel and a chassis adjustment to alleviate the handling issues. Dillon restarted in the eighth position on lap 86 and experienced relief from the chassis adjustment. When another caution flag slowed the field on lap 98 and, Richmond instructed the 2011 ARCA Racing Series champion down pit road for a two right-side tire pit stop which included a round of chassis adjustments. The two-tire stop catapulted the team into the second position for the ensuing restart. Dillon battled three-wide for the lead, eventually taking over the top spot on lap 117. He led for 17 circuits around the 1.5-mile facility before slipping back to third as the tight-handling returned to the No. 3 Chevrolet. With multiple restarts in the final nine laps of the American Ethanol 225, Dillon battled traffic and handling issues in the closing laps of the race and lost track position, relegating the 20-year-old to a 12th-place finish. Despite the 12th-place result, Dillon improved to second in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver championship point standings, 23 markers behind the leader.
Start – 3 Finish – 12 Laps Led – 17 Points – 2
TY DILLON QUOTE: “Tonight was a good points night for the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops team. We struggled a little bit with the handling of the Chevrolet, but we led some laps and gained a spot in the championship hunt. We just have to keep putting together good trucks, and a win should be around the corner.”
Coulter Salvages 15th-Place Finish at Chicagoland Speedway
Joey Coulter and the No. 22 Richard Childress Racing team unloaded a fast Silverado at Chicagoland Speedway for the American Ethanol 225; starting the 150-lap event from the outside pole. The black-and-red Chevrolet showed speed from the start of the 225-mile affair, running in the second position, behind RCR teammate Brendan Gaughan in the early portions of the event. Coulter soon radioed to his crew that the No. 22 Chevrolet had developed a tight-handling condition and it worsened as the run progressed. The crew used pit strategy, throughout the course of the first 100 laps, to ultimately get the Miami Springs, Fla., native, out front, to pace the field three circuits. With less than 50 laps remaining, Coulter collided with a competitor while battling for position which resulted in him making contact with the outside wall and cutting a tire, forcing crew chief Harold Holly to direct his driver to pit road. While under caution, the team utilized two stops to change four tires and work on the sheet metal in order to get Coulter back on the racing surface without losing a lap. Coulter restarted in the 19th position with 40 laps remaining at the 1.5-mile speedway. As cautions plagued the remaining laps of the American Ethanol 225, the 22-year-old continued to fight for track position. Coulter was scored in the 15th position after the checkered flag waved following a green-white-checkered finish. Coulter remains eighth in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver championship point standings, 73 points behind leader Timothy Peters.
Start – 2 Finish – 15 Laps Led – 3 Points – 8
JOEY COULTER QUOTE:
“We definitely had a truck capable of winning tonight at Chicagoland (Speedway). It’s disappointing when I know how fast the RCR Chevrolet was all weekend and how hard the crew worked. I learned a lot this weekend and I’m ready to go to Pocono (Raceway) in a couple of weeks and compete for the win.”
