Toyota NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) Post-Race Notes & Quotes
Darlington Raceway
Race 24 of 33 – 200.8 miles, 147 laps
Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016
TOYOTA NXS DRIVER FINISHING POSITIONS at Darlington Raceway
1st, Elliott Sadler*
2nd, DENNY HAMLIN
3rd, DANIEL SUAREZ
4th, Kyle Larson*
5th, Brennan Poole*
6th, ERIK JONES
14th, JJ YELEY
18th, DAKODA ARMSTRONG
30th, JEFF GREEN
36th, TIMMY HILL
40th, MATT DiBENEDETTO
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA NXS DRIVER POINT STANDINGS following Darlington Raceway (race 24 of 33)*
2nd, DANIEL SUAREZ 761 points
6th, ERIK JONES 713 points
13th, DAKODA ARMSTRONG 522 points
16th, JJ YELEY 477 points
*unofficial point standings
TOYOTA NOTES
· Camry driver Denny Hamlin (second) was the top-finishing Toyota driver in Saturday’s NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) race at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina.
· Hamlin led the field twice for 47 laps (of 147) on the 1.366-mile track.
· Toyota drivers Daniel Suarez (third) and Erik Jones (sixth) also finished in the top-10 overall in South Carolina.
TOYOTA QUOTES
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 18 Sport Clips Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 2nd
How did you try to take advantage of Elliott Sadler hitting the wall?
“I knew his car was going to get really tight after he hit the wall there. I kind of beat up our right side a little bit on that run. Just probably my fault. I told Chris (Gayle), the crew chief, to – he had to do something to tighten us up if we had to race anybody and we just overdid it and I was plowing tight that last run. I got – it wasn’t good on restarts. All that means we finished second, but congratulations to Elliott Sadler. Tried to win it for Sport Clips Help A Hero – they do a lot for this weekend and do a lot for our military, so thanks to them. Just came up short. I really would have liked to have got a win here, but we’ll have to wait until next year.”
What happened in the final laps?
“Yeah, it was exciting. I wish I was on the other end of it for sure, but just we had a really bad second gear in our car and I got terrible restarts all day. I knew it would be tough once we lost the lead and then lost second to try to get back up there, but we – Daniel (Suarez) got in the wall and allowed us to get back around here and then our car was just too far off. It was the worst that we were all day on that final run and just really couldn’t do anything. Once the 1 (Elliott Sadler) was committed to the wall, I really couldn’t gain a whole lot on him. He made one mistake there and allowed me to get pretty close, but the only chance I had was to kind of slide job him into the corner. I wasn’t clear and I didn’t want to stuff him in the wall, so he won it and we finished second, but proud of the effort. This is a big weekend for everyone at Sport Clips. This is a big commitment that they put into this weekend, a big commitment they do for our military with the Help A Hero and wish we would have got a win for them, but still a good finish.”
DANIEL SUAREZ, No. 19 ARRIS Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 3rd
Did hitting the wall cost you a chance at a win?
“I really think so. I was pushing very hard trying to get the lead and my car was really strong – maybe one of the strongest runs that we had all race long. The previous run, we were too loose and then in that run we were a little too tight, so I just feel like I wish I could have found something in the middle, but our 19 ARRIS Toyota Camry was strong. I just wish maybe I could have been a little bit more patient or wait a little bit more for the front instead of hitting the wall right there next to the 4 (Ross Chastain).”
How would you describe Darlington Raceway after two races here?
“This place is tough – maybe one of the toughest places out there – but I like it. I take it as a challenge. My first time here, we finished third. We finished third again. I wish we could have finished a little better – why not in the victory lane – but we’ll come back next year and try again.”
ERIK JONES, No. 20 DEWALT FLEXVOLT Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 6th
JJ YELEY, No. 44 Zachry Toyota Camry, TriStar Motorsports
Finishing Position: 14th
DAKODA ARMSTRONG, No. 28 Davey Allison Throwback Toyota Camry, JGL Racing
Finishing Position: 18th
JEFF GREEN, No. 14 Toyota Camry, TriStar Motorsports
Finishing Position: 30th
TIMMY HILL, No. 40 CrashClaimsR.us/OCR Gaz Bar Toyota Camry
Finishing Position: 36th
MATT DIBENEDETTO, No. 10 Toyota Camry, TriStar Motorsports
Finishing Position: 40th
