Track: Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, 2.28 Mile Road Oval
Race: 32 of 36
Event: Bank of America ROVAL 400 (252.88 miles, 109 laps)
John Hunter Nemechek
No. 38 CITGARD Ford Mustang
Started: 19th
Finished: 36th
Stage One: 38th
Stage Two: 38th
Stage Three: 36th
John Hunter Nemechek took the green flag in Sunday’s highly anticipated NASCAR Cup Series race at the ROVAL at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the 19th position. With track conditions starting off wet, all drivers were required to use “wet” tires at the beginning of the race. At the Competition Caution, Nemechek said that his No. 38 CITGARD Ford Mustang was lacking front grip and he needed to turn better, but “drive off isn’t bad.” He would stay out under caution but came to pit road on Lap 18 to change to “slick” tires and take fuel under green. On Lap 23, Nemechek would spin and hit the wall in Turn 6, bringing out a caution and damaging the right side of the car. He would finish Stage 1 in 38th place.
While on pit road for the crew to work on the right-side damage, Nemechek would have too many pit crew members over the wall under NASCAR’s Damaged Vehicle Policy. He would have to return to pit road, where his No. 38 CITGARD Ford Mustang would be held for a two-lap penalty, ultimately putting him three laps behind the leader. Nemechek soldiered on to take the green- and white-checkered flag to finish Stage 2 in 38th place.
Nemechek would continue to persevere throughout Stage 3 in his No. 38 CITGARD Ford Mustang. On Lap 54, he picked up some additional damage in the scuffle following a spin by the No. 11. He would pit a few laps later under green for the crew to work on the car. A tire rub discovered shortly after returning to the track would force him to pit road under green once again on Lap 63. Nemechek would go on to take the checkered flag in 36th place, four laps down.
Nemechek on the Charlotte ROVAL:
“The ROVAL was not our friend today, unfortunately. Our No. 38 CITGARD Ford Mustang fired off pretty decent, but the rear end just stepped out on me in the first half of the race and I couldn’t save it. We pitted for damage repair and received a penalty that put us two more laps down and we couldn’t really recover from there. Sometimes mistakes just hurt. Hopefully it was still a good show for the fans. It was great that we were able to have them with us in in person at home. We’ll add what we can to our notebook for next time and get ready for Kansas.”
