Early Exit for Brendan Gaughan at Auto Club Speedway
Brendan Gaughan finished 43rd in the Auto Club 400 on Sunday afternoon at Auto Club Speedway after the engine expired on the No. 33 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet. Gaughan and the No. 33 team utilized three practice sessions to work on the handling on the Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet before the 200-lap affair Sunday.
Qualifying the black and gold machine 37th, Gaughan took the green flag under grey skies and quickly reported a problem as he missed a shift at the start. The Las Vegas native radioed to crew chief Gil Martin that his Chevrolet had lost power, and he was coasting around the two-mile race track. Gaughan brought the No. 33 South Point Hotel & Casino race car to the attention of the pit crew to learn the engine had expired before lap one was completed.
BRENDAN GAUGHAN QUOTE:
“I appreciate the opportunity Mr. Childress gave me. Unfortunately, I didn’t take advantage of it today. I made a mistake on the start and broke the motor. ECR makes phenomenal engines, but you can’t expect it to survive a missed shift and handle the high RPMs . I just have to stay focused on the rest of the opportunities that I have at RCR and make sure I take full advantage of them.”