Team: No. 6 AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Matt Puccia
Twitter: @Roush6Team, @RoushFenway and @TBayne6
Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race – Saturday, August 18 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN
ADVANCE NOTES
Bayne at Bristol Motor Speedway
· Bayne will make his ninth Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) start at Bristol this weekend. In eight previous races the Knoxville native has finished in the top-10 twice, and has an average finish of 17th.
· Bayne’s best Cup finish at Thunder Valley came in the 2016 spring race, a fifth-place result. He followed that with a seventh-place finish in last year’s August event. He also finished top-15 on three other occasions (15th – 2015, 12th – 2016, 11th – 2017).
· His best qualifying effort at ‘The World’s Fastest Half-Mile’ came back in 2016 where he qualified 10th. His average starting position is 21.1.
· In 12 Xfinity starts at Thunder Valley, Bayne recorded four top 10’s for an average finish of 15th. His best finish (sixth) came twice, first in the 2010 fall race in the No. 99 car, and again in the fall of 2013 in the No. 6 Ford EcoBoost machine for Roush Fenway Racing.
Last Time at ‘The Last Great Colosseum’
· The April race at Bristol brought a lot of action, including some sleet and slow, which ultimately pushed the finish of the race to Monday.
· Bayne started 33rd and kept his nose clean through the first 100 laps, before a multi-car accident at lap 117 set him back. At lap 204, precipitation set in for good halting the race for the day.
· In Monday’s resumption, Bayne fought to get back on the lead lap, but a long green-flag run negated that and he would ultimately finish 24th.
Matt Puccia at Bristol Motor Speedway
· Matt Puccia will be atop the pit box for his 15th MENCS event at Bristol on Saturday. In 14 previous starts, Puccia has one top-five and four top-10 finishes. His best finish was in the 2016 spring race with Bayne.
· In five races with Bayne at Bristol, Puccia has four finishes of 12th or better, including the fifth-place result in 2016, and seventh last August.
· Puccia also called four races in the Xfinity Series for Paul Menard, recording one top-10 (2009).
QUOTE WORTHY
Bayne on racing at Bristol:
“Bristol is always circled on the calendar for me for many reasons. It’s my favorite track, my hometown crowd, and we’ve done really well there over the years. Racing at night amps up the intensity and pressure, and I’m looking forward to the challenge. Coming off a seventh-place finish in this race a year ago, I’m confident that if we can stay out of trouble early, we’ll have our AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford Fusion in the mix at the end to bring home a good finish.”
Recapping Michigan
Bayne had a solid run going Sunday afternoon at Michigan, hanging inside the top-20, before a mechanical issue ended his day early. With less than 25 to go, Bayne brought his Fusion to pit road for a final splash of fuel, when a mechanical issue arose sending him behind the wall, ending his day prematurely with only a handful of laps remaining.
On the Car
Bayne will once again run the colors of AdvoCare Rehydrate this weekend, a scheme that promotes AdvoCare’s electrolyte drink that Bayne and the No. 6 team use each weekend at the track.
About AdvoCare Rehydrate®
AdvoCare Rehydrate® electrolyte drink mix features vitamins, minerals and amino acids designed to promote optimal hydration and recovery. A blend of electrolytes, including a 1:1 ratio of sodium to potassium, work to re-establish your electrolyte balance, while sequential carbohydrates help to maintain proper metabolism and give your body the fuel it needs to perform at its best. Shop and learn more about the products and opportunity at advocare.com.
