Track: Martinsville Speedway, 0.526 Mile Oval
Race: 11 of 38
Event: Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 (263 miles, 500 laps)
John Hunter Nemechek
No. 38 Fire Alarm Services, Inc. Ford Mustang
Started: 18th
Finished: 25th
Stage One: 21st
Stage Two: 18th
Stage Three: 25th
John Hunter Nemechek took the green flag in Wednesday’s race at Martinsville Speedway in the 18th position. He quickly radioed that his No. 38 FAS Ford Mustang was “super loose center” and that the car “wants to over-rotate.” He pitted under caution for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment, which he said helped. By the time he took the green- and white-checkered flag to end Stage 1 in 21st position, Nemechek said the car “turned center pretty well.”
For much of Stage 2, Nemechek noted that his No. 38 FAS machine was “free on entry” but “tight center off.” The crew made additional packer and track bar adjustments under caution in an effort to improve Nemechek’s handling as the race went on and track conditions changed under the lights. Nemechek fought hard to stay inside of the top 20 for most of Stage 2 and finished P18.
At the beginning of the final stage, Nemechek noted that his FAS Ford Mustang was still too loose and he “needed lateral drive.” Under caution on Lap 325, Nemechek pitted for 4 tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment, which he said helped, but continued to battle a loose-handling racecar for much of the final stage. He would take the checkered flag 25th on the leaderboard.
Nemechek on Martinsville:
“It was a tough night for our No. 38 FAS Ford Mustang. We fired off pretty loose and Seth and the crew tried to make adjustments as the night went on, but we weren’t able to get it to where we needed. My team worked hard and I’m proud of the effort everyone continues to put in each and every week. Big thanks to Fire Alarm Services for continuing to support us. We’ll take our learnings and head to Homestead on Sunday.”
