Track: Talladega Speedway, 2.6 Mile Oval
Race: 31 of 36
Event: YellaWood 500 (500 miles, 188 laps)
John Hunter Nemechek
No. 38 Speedy Cash Ford Mustang
Started: 23rd
Finished: 8th
Stage One: 20th
Stage Two: 5th
Stage Three: 8th
For the second week in a row, John Hunter Nemechek drove with Speedy Cash on board his No. 38 Ford Mustang. He took the green flag at Talladega Superspeedway in the 23rd position. With the yellow flag coming three times before the Competition Caution, Nemechek said that his balance wasn’t bad, but he felt like he dragged down the front straightaway, even in the draft. He pitted for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment before restarting the final 30 laps of Stage 1. Nemechek would go on to take the green- and white-checkered flag in 20th place. The crew made several chassis adjustments under the Stage 1 Caution to try and set him up for a good balance to last the rest of the race.
Nemechek would restart the race at the tail end of the field after receiving a penalty for speeding on pit road. He made a strong charge towards the front for much of Stage 2, running in the top 10 and top 15 for several laps. When a big wreck involving several lead cars happened on Lap 108, Nemechek and Spotter Chris Osborne did a great job navigating through the carnage. Nemechek said he slid his tires, but came away without any contact or damage. He pitted after a brief red flag pause for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment. Nemechek would go on to finish Stage 2 in 5th place, earning him 6 stage points.
John Hunter Nemechek would start the day’s Final Stage in the 8th position. When a caution came out on Lap 147, he was mostly happy with the handling on his No. 38 Speedy Cash Ford Mustang. Crew Chief Seth Barbour made the call to pit for 4 tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment and Nemechek would have to restart at the back of the field for an uncontrolled tire penalty during that stop. He managed to make his way back to the front quickly though, running in the top 10 for much of the final 30 laps. As late-race cautions transpired, Nemechek was running as high as 3rd, but after a green-white-checkered attempt brought out one final yellow flag, he was forced to pit for 4 tires and fuel. Restarting towards the back of the pack, Nemechek managed to make his way into the top 10 to tie his personal-best finish of 8th place.
Nemechek on Talladega:
“My Front Row Motorsports crew put together a really fast Speedy Cash Ford Mustang for us this weekend at Talladega. We fired off just a little tight, but Seth and the crew made some good adjustments that set us up for the end. We managed to stay out of trouble the whole day, but that last caution forced us to pit for fuel – otherwise, we would have had a better shot at the win. We still came away with a nice top-10 finish for our partners at Speedy Cash. Thankful to have them on board with us for one more race this season at Kansas.”
