JOLIET, Ill. (September 18, 2016) – Greg Biffle drove his No. 16 Performance Plus Motor Oil Ford Fusion to a 26th-place finish Sunday afternoon at Chicagoland Speedway. Biffle started 24th due to rain changing the track schedule and attempted to stretch fuel mileage to overcome handling issues, but long green flag runs led to an uphill battle.
Rain on Friday forced NASCAR to cancel qualifying in order to have a practice session for the Sprint Cup cars. The qualifying rain out marked the second-consecutive cancellation for the series and lined Biffle up 24th for the green flag on Sunday afternoon.
Biffle initially gained positions from the drop of the green flag until his front turn went away and he fell back through the field. The team took big swings at the handling pulling shims, wedge and air pressure adjustments. Multiple long green flag runs didn’t leave many opportunities to pit, but Biffle capitalized when he could.
Due to the handling Biffle lost track position, but in an effort to utilize pit strategy he stayed out longer than others. The strategy allowed him to take the “wave around” twice during the race, but timing never got him back on the lead lap.
The race concluded with a green-white-checkered finish. Biffle took the restart 25th and lost one spot to cross the finish line 26th in his No. 16 Performance Plus Motor Oil Ford Fusion.
