Track: Martinsville Speedway, 0.526 Mile Oval
Race: 35 of 36
Event: Xfinity 500 (263 miles, 500 laps)
John Hunter Nemechek
No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang
Started: 23rd
Finished: 26th
Stage One: 22nd
Stage Two: 25th
Stage Three: 26th
John Hunter Nemechek started Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway in the 23rd position. His No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang struggled at the beginning, losing a lap before the Competition Caution on Lap 60. He radioed to the team that he was “loose in, loose off, tight center… hard to get power down.” He would take 4 tires, fuel and a packer adjustment on pit road. By the time a caution came out on Lap 73, Nemechek was in the Lucky Dog spot and would regain his lap after pitting for a track bar adjustment. Finishing Stage 1 in the 22nd position, Nemechek noted, “drive off is decent, roll is okay, still snug center.” He would pit for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment.
Nemechek restarted the race in 23rd place. When another caution came on Lap 145, it appeared as though Nemechek had made contact with another car, but there were no issues with his No. 38 Death Wish Coffee machine. On Lap 186, he noted that he was still “tight center” and struggling to roll, and would pit for 4 tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment. By the time he took the green- and white-checkered flag to finish Stage 2 in 25th place, Nemechek felt that the balance was getting worse and the car bounced a lot, particularly in the turns. He pitted at the Stage 2 Caution for 4 tires, fuel, an air pressure adjustment, packer and track bar adjustments.
Nemechek would take the green flag to start the Final Stage of the day at Martinsville Speedway in 23rd place. He noted on Lap 294 that he needed “more drive” in his No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang. When the tenth caution of the day came on Lap 352, Nemechek radioed that he was “free off, tight center… no lateral or forward drive.” He pitted under caution for 4 tires, fuel and added spring rubber. By Lap 401, Nemechek said, “center was better, but super free.” His handling did not improve much throughout the remainder of the race, and Nemechek would cross the finish line in 26th place, two laps down.
Nemechek on Martinsville:
“Not exactly the day we were hoping for in our No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang. We struggled pretty much from the start. We were pretty tight and bouncing a lot on entry [into the turns]. We kept trying different adjustments throughout the race but couldn’t quite get it to where we needed the handling in order to make a strong push towards the front. I’m thankful for my team for always sticking with me. A huge thanks to Death Wish Coffee for coming on board this weekend. It was great to recognize our ‘Thank A Trucker’ contest winner, Jason Griffith, with them at Martinsville. Thank you to all the truck drivers out there who have worked tirelessly all year long to keep us going.”
