XFINITY Series: Restarts prove to be key in California
NASCAR XFINITY Series
DRIVE4CLOTS.com 300
Auto Club Speedway
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Race Highlights:
- Brian Scott qualified second and was the highest qualifying Richard Childress Racing driver at Auto Club Speedway. Austin Dillon qualified seventh, Brendan Gaughan eighth and Ty Dillon 16th.
- Brendan Gaughan finished second, Brian Scott sixth, Ty Dillon 14th and Austin Dillon 38th.
- Next up for the NASCAR XFINITY Series is the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. Catch all the action live on Friday, April 10 at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Fox Sports 1 and broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Satellite Radio, channel 90.
Brian Scott Captures Third Top-10 Finish at Auto Club Speedway
As the NASCAR XFINITY Series concludes the West Coast swing at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday afternoon, Brian Scott and the No. 2 Vons/Reser’s Chevrolet team were ready for battle. For the third time in five races this season, Scott started from the second position. As the 150-lap DRIVE4CLOTS.com 300 began, the Mike Hillman Jr.-led team worked on adjusting the No. 2 Camaro to help with tight-handling conditions on the high line. The speed was found on the high groove of the two-mile track and the 27-year-old driver raced a majority of the race there. Scott was scored as high as second, but made contact with the wall coming out of Turn 4 on multiple accounts. The No. 2 machine battled with the leaders three and four wide as the race concluded as Scott still fought tight conditions when his car got the past center of the turns. The Vons/Resers Camaro crossed the finish line in the sixth position, gaining four places in the driver championship point standings to the 10th position. The XFINITY Series will return at Texas Motor Speedway on Friday night on April 10.
Start – 2 Finish – 6 Laps Led – 0 Points – 10
Brian Scott Quote:
"That one’s on me. I hit the wall too many times and screwed up on the restarts. The Vons/Reser’s pit crew was great on pit road. We’ll keep building and go get them at Texas Motor Speedway."
Ty Dillon Retains Points Lead, Finishes 14th at Auto Club Speedway
Ty Dillon drove Richard Childress Racing’s No. 3 WESCO Chevrolet Camaro to 14th-place finish Saturday afternoon at Auto Club Speedway and remains the NASCAR XFINITY Series point leader heading into the Series’ two-week bye. Dillon qualified 16th Saturday morning despite battling a loose-handling race car. Crew Chief Danny Stockman made the necessary adjustments on the No. 3 Chevrolet and Dillon managed to race in and around the top-15. On lap 59, Dillon reported his Camaro’s balance was where he wanted it as he entered the race’s top-10 running order. Despite a balance able to get Dillon around the two-mile speedway, he struggled on the race’s final restart on lap 121 and slipped back to the 14th position, where he took the checkered flag. Dillon currently holds a five-point advantage for first place in the driver point standings.
Start – 16 Finish – 14 Laps Led – 0 Points – 1
TY DILLON QUOTE:
"We struggled a little bit this weekend to find the right balance, but still managed to finish inside the top-15. On weekends we may not be clicking as well as we need to be, we still need to finish strong. That’s what we did today. We’ll hang on to this points lead going into the two off weeks, but obviously work hard to get better. I want to thank WESCO for all their support this weekend, it was nice to see all of their great customers here at Auto Club Speedway to support this No. 3 team."
Austin Dillon’s Day Shortened by Mechanical Issue at Auto Club Speedway
Due to an issue in the engine of the No. 33 Ruud Chevrolet, Austin Dillon and the Richard Childress Racing team finished 38th at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday afternoon. Dillon and the Ruud team concluded Friday afternoon practice on top of the leaderboard before qualifying seventh for the 150-lap affair on Saturday. Once the green flag waved on the field, Dillon remained within the top 10 of the running order despite battling tight-handling conditions. Crew chief Nick Harrison called the 24-year-old driver to pit road during the lap-32 caution period for four tires, fuel and a round of chassis adjustments to combat Dillon’s handling issue. A quick stop by the Ruud pit crew allotted Dillon the sixth spot for the ensuing restart. Diving to the inside line, Dillon went three-wide for position before noticing his Chevrolet lacked power on lap 47. The Welcome, N.C., native brought the No. 33 machine to pit road for diagnosis, at first, then the garage where the team confirmed a broken part in the engine, relegating them to a 38th-place finish.
Start – 7 Finish – 38 Laps Led – 0 Owner’s Points – 5
AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:
"After that restart, I didn’t feel like we were running with as much power as we had all weekend. I told Nick (Harrison, crew chief) I didn’t have any power. I hate it for these guys, we had a fast car. They’ve worked hard all weekend and this isn’t the finish they deserve. We’ll take it back to the shop and figure out what happened and come back in Texas."
"After that restart, I didn’t feel like we were running with as much power as we had all weekend. I told Nick (Harrison, crew chief) I didn’t have any power. I hate it for these guys, we had a fast car. They’ve worked hard all weekend and this isn’t the finish they deserve. We’ll take it back to the shop and figure out what happened and come back in Texas."
Brendan Gaughan Earns a Second-Place Finish at Auto Club Speedway
Brendan Gaughan took the green flag for the NASCAR XFINITY Series DRIVE4CLOTS.com 300 at Auto Club Speedway in the eighth position on Saturday afternoon. The Las Vegas native began reporting tight-handling conditions with his South Point Chevrolet on lap five. During the first pit stop on lap 34, the Shane Wilson-led team began to make chassis adjustments to improve the tight-handling conditions. Throughout the 150-lap event, Gaughan raced in the top-15, but the momentum ultimately came from the last pit stop for the No. 62 South Point team. Pitting on lap 116, the team made a wedge adjustment and air pressure changes to the right-side tires. On the final restart, the 39-year-old-driver started in the eighth position and battled his way to the second position where he raced to catch the leader for the remainder of the race. The second-place finish gives the No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet their first top five and third top-10 finish of the season. Gaughan remains sixth in the driver point standings as the XFINITY Series takes a hiatus for the next two weeks, returning to action April 10 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Start – 8 Finish – 2 Laps Led – 0 Points – 6
BRENDAN GAUGHAN QUOTE:
"Just like the last four weeks, we unloaded a strong RCR Chevrolet. Shane Wilson and this No.62 team did a phenomenal job on our stops making the necessary adjustments to put us in contention at the end of the race. I love that I am upset about finishing second."