Kaulig Racing Post-Race Report | Pocono Raceway

HighPoint.com 400

AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Action Industries Camaro ZL1

AJ Allmendinger qualified 16th for the HighPoint.com 400 at Pocono Raceway.
Allmendinger drove up to 13th place within the first lap and made it up to 12th by lap three. When the first caution came out on lap five, Allmendinger told the team he was happy with the balance of his car and had better turn than he did in practice. Allmendinger restarted 12th on lap 10 and made his way up to 10th by lap 11. He continued to run 10th until the leaders come down pit road on lap 27, moving him up to fifth where he went on to finish the opening stage earning five stage points.
Allmendinger restarted 19th on lap 35. The caution quickly came out on lap 36 and made his way up to 16th where he would restart on lap 41 on the outside lane. He was shuffled back to 19th as the caution came out again on the restart. On lap 45, Allmendinger took the green flag from 19th and drove up to 15th before the caution flew again on the restart. The No. 16 Action Industries Chevy restarted 15th on lap 50, and Allmendinger drove up to 13th by lap 56, telling his team he was tighter on entry this run. He took over 12th on lap 63, where he ran until coming down pit road on lap 64 for a scheduled green flag stop. Allmendinger was scored in 31st place, one lap down, telling his team he was free in clean air. As the leaders came down pit road for green flag stops, Allmendinger made it up to 11th before the caution came out on lap 91 ending the second stage.
Allmendinger came down pit road under the stage break for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment and would restart the final stage 20th. Making it up to 18th in the first lap, Allmendinger told the team he was tight in traffic. He continued to earn positions, taking over 16th before the caution came out on lap 105. On lap 110, Allmendinger restarted 14th and took over 12th before the lap was complete, but fell back to 15th by lap 119. Allmendinger came down pit road on lap 120 for a scheduled green flag stop from 12th place for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. As green flag stops cycled through, Allmendinger was 16th when the caution came out on lap 149. The caution came out again on the restart resulting in NASCAR overtime and the No. 16 went on to finish 17th in Pocono.

“We had a fast No. 16 Action Industries Chevy today in Pocono. Balance was really solid all day, but unfortunately strategy did not play out the way we needed it. I’m disappointed with the end result but overall really happy with the speed we had all weekend.” – AJ Allmendinger

Justin Haley, No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1

Justin Haley qualified 19th for the HighPoint.com 400 at Pocono Raceway.
The first caution of the day came out after just six laps. Haley gained one position, sitting 18th. The green flag came back out on lap 11. While some of the field short pitted the stage, Haley finished out the stage in eighth place, earning valuable stage points.
Haley radioed that he lacked grip in the front tires of his No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevy before pitting for tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment to help with front turn. The second stage began with three back-to-back cautions before finally going back green on lap 51. Haley ran in the top 15 and made it as high as 11th before making a scheduled, green-flag pit stop on lap 70 for four tires and fuel. The final caution of the stage came out with just four laps to go, ending the stage under yellow. Haley finished the second stage in 15th.
Haley pitted for four tires and fuel during the second stage break before the start of the final stage before restarting in 22nd place. The caution came out on lap 105, and the No. 31 team elected to stay out. The green flag came back out on lap 110 with Haley restarting from 15th place. Haley made a green-flag stop on lap 121 and would make his final pit stop of the day when the caution came on with 18 laps remaining. The field went back to green for just one lap before the next caution fell with 12 laps to go. Haley sat 23rd on the next restart before making contact with another car that would ultimately end his day a few laps shy of the finish. Haley was scored 33rd.

“We had a tough ending to a really hard-fought day in our No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1. We struggled with grip in our front tires all day and just kept getting tighter and tighter. We had some solid pit stops and made some good changes so I thought we would be in a really good spot there with a handful of laps to go. Unfortunately our day ended a couple laps early.” – Justin Haley

Explore the Pocono Mountains 225

Daniel Hemric, No. 11 Chevy Accessories Chevrolet

Daniel Hemric qualified second for the Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 at Pocono Raceway.
Hemric fought for the lead in the opening laps but ultimately kept his position. Although he reported lack of right-rear grip, Hemric remained in second place, where he finished the caution-free, opening stage, earning nine stage points.
Hemric came down pit road under the stage break for an air pressure and track bar adjustment, four tires and fuel before restarting third for the start of the second stage. Firing off free, Hemric fell back to eighth on lap 36, reporting his No.11 Chevy had not tightened up during the run. Not able to work his way back up front, Hemric finished stage two in ninth place.
Hemric pitted during the final stage break on lap 42 for four tires and fuel. He then restarted 11th on lap 46 before a wreck brought out the caution once again. Hemric stayed out restarted 12th on lap 51 before making his scheduled green-flag pit stop on lap 57 for fuel only. He had made his way back up to 12th before the next caution came out with 11 laps to go. Hemric made his final pit stop for four tires and fuel under caution before the field took the green flag with six laps remaining. The caution came back out on the restart, sending the race into overtime. Hemric restarted eighth and went on to finish fifth, as a caution came out on the final lap, making the race official.

“We didn’t have a great practice session to start the weekend, but we were able to qualify well and get ourselves a good starting position. Everyone at Kaulig Racing put their heads together to bring a different package this weekend, and I was surprised by the speed we had in stage one. It validated the direction we were going in. The stack up on the restart in stage two happened, and I could tell we got quite a bit more damage than we thought, because the car never felt the same after that restart. I lost speed after that. After strategy and making the most of a couple restarts, we got another top five for our Chevy Accessories Camaro.” – Daniel Hemric

Daniel Suarez, No. 10 LeafHome Water Solutions Chevrolet

Daniel Suarez qualified 23rd for the Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 at Pocono Raceway.
Suarez’s No. 10 LeafHome Water Solutions Chevrolet fired off tight but would improve on the long, green flag run for the duration of the entire first stage. During the closing laps of the stage, Suarez began running second-place lap times, ultimately finishing the opening stage in 15th place.
During the first stage break, Suarez radioed that he needed more rear security on entry of the corners. He pitted for four tires, fuel, left-rear air pressure and a track bar adjustment. Starting as the sixth car on the inside, Suarez fell back to 19th before the car began coming to him once again on the long run. The team made the call to short pit with three laps remaining in the stage for right-side tires and fuel, putting Suarez in 33rd to end the second stage.
Suarez stayed out during the second stage break, which would put hm in second place to start the final stage. As the final stage went green, the first, non-stage caution of the day immediately came out for a wreck behind Suarez. The green flag came back out on lap 51, before Suarez made his scheduled, green-flag pit stop for four tires and fuel on lap 55. Suarez was told to make up as much as he could while the stops cycled through. The next caution came out with 11 laps remaining. Suarez pitted from 13th place for four tires and fuel before restarting behind teammates Chandler Smith and Daniel Hemric. The caution flag came back out just one lap later, sending the field to overtime. Suarez restarted 13th with two laps remaining and worked his way up to 10th place, avoiding a last-lap wreck that would end the race under caution.

“All-in-all, we had a decent day. The car is clean, and we finished in the top 10. I felt like a was a little rusty getting back into a Xfinity car after six years or so, but it was a lot of fun. I’m very thankful to Chris Rice, Matt Kaulig, and everyone at Kaulig Racing for this opportunity. I really enjoyed it, and hopefully we can do it again in the future.” – Daniel Suarez

Chandler Smith, No. 16 Quick Tie Products Chevrolet

Chandler Smith qualified 16th for the Explore the Pocono Mountains 225 at Pocono Raceway.
Smith made up five positions in the first three laps before dropping back to 12th on lap 11. He told the No. 16 crew that the car felt good through turns one and two, but was snug when applying the throttle on the exit of turn three. Smith took over 11th with five laps to go where he finished the opening stage.
The No. 16 Quick Tie Products Chevy came down pit road for a track bar adjustment, fuel and four tires at the stage-break pit stop. Smith restarted sixth on the outside line when the green came back out on lap 26. He moved up to ninth on lap 28 but fell back to 10th where he finished the second stage.
Under the second stage caution, the team came down pit road for four tires and fuel. Smith restarted the final stage in 15th on lap 46, but a multi-car wreck brought out another caution. The green flag flew next on lap 51. Smith fought his way to sixth just one lap later but fell to eighth two laps later. After taking sixth back on lap 56, Smith came down pit lane for fuel only. The No. 16 cycled to 33rd on an alternate pit stop strategy. As green flag stops continued, Smith continued to move up in the field. With 11 laps to go, Smith made it up to 10th when the yellow flag flew again. Crew chief, Bruce Schlicker, called Smith to pit road for four fresh tires and a splash of fuel, putting him 10th on the restart with six laps to go. Smith lost six positions on the restart and sat 16th when the final caution flew with four to go in the race, setting up NASCAR Overtime. Smith restarted 16th and made contact with the No. 7 resulting in a 20th-place finish at Pocono Raceway.

“This was a rough day from the very beginning. I felt like we had a car that could improve as the race went on, but we were struggling to get it right on the exit of turn three and weren’t catching many breaks. We got caught up in other people’s problems eventually and limped home because of it. Regardless, I’m happy for both the No. 10 and No. 11 teams for their finishes. Even if we can’t get a top five week-in and week-out, it’s nice to see the hard work of the men and women back at the Kaulig Racing shop pay off.” – Chandler Smith

About Kaulig Racing™

Kaulig Racing™ is a full-time multi-car NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) and NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) team, owned by award winning entrepreneur, Matt Kaulig. Established in 2016, Kaulig Racing™ has made the NXS Playoffs consecutively each season since the playoff system started and has won back-to-back regular-season championships. Before becoming a full-time NCS team, Kaulig Racing made multiple starts in the 2021 NCS season and won in its seventh-ever start with AJ Allmendinger’s victory at “The Brickyard” for the Verizon 200 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The team expanded to a two-car, full-time NCS team in 2022 with Justin Haley piloting the No. 31 Camaro ZL1, and an all-star lineup featured in the No. 16 Camaro ZL1. Haley will continue to drive the No. 31 full-time in 2023, alongside AJ Allmendinger, who will drive the No. 16 Camaro ZL1. The team will continue to field three, full-time NXS entries; the No. 10 Chevrolet driven by an all-star lineup, the No. 11 Chevrolet driven by Daniel Hemric, and the No. 16 Chevrolet driven by Chandler Smith. To learn more about the team, visit kauligracing.com.