YOUNG SCORES TOP-10 FINISH AT HOME TRACK IN NASCAR TRUCK SERIES RETURN
Tyler Young made his return to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Friday night at Texas Motor Speedway. Despite fighting loose conditions for most of the race, the Midland, Texas native was able to climb his way through the field and earn a top-10 finish in the PPG 400 at his home track.
STAGE 1 RECAP:
· Started Stage 1: P20
· Finished Stage 1: P16
From the drop of the green flag, Young reported that he had a very loose FINDARANCH.com Texas Rig Equipment No. 20 Chevrolet Silverado. When the first caution came out on lap 7, he came down pit road for a track bar adjustment and restarted in 17th. During a caution on lap 28, Young brought the No. 20 to pit road for four tires, fuel and adjustments to help aid the loose conditions. He restarted in 22nd for the final seven-lap stretch of the opening stage and finished 16th.
STAGE 2 RECAP:
· Started Stage 2: P10
· Finished Stage 2: P6
As a result of only pitting a handful of laps before, crew chief Andrew Abbott called the No. 20 to pit road for just a track-bar adjustment on lap 43 and Young restarted in 10th to kick off the second stage. When the caution was displayed on Lap 74, he was running in the 16th position. The team opted not to pit during the caution and Young restarted fifth for the one lap shootout to the end of the stage, where he finished sixth.
STAGE 3 RECAP:
· Started Stage 3: P16
· Finished Stage 3: P7
On lap 83, Young came to pit road for an adjustment, fuel and four more fresh tires and restarted the final stage of the 167-lap PPG 400 in 16th. The 27-year-old started to climb his way through the field and when the caution came out on lap 106 he was running in 13th. During the caution, he pit for four tires, fuel and a shock adjustment and again on lap 112 to top off with fuel before going back to green flag racing. With 40 laps to go, Young was running just outside the top-10 and was in 10th when the caution came out on lap 149. Another late race caution was displayed on lap 158 and Young restarted ninth. He was able to impressively charge to a seventh-place finish after the green-white-checkered restart, earning his best finish at his home track.
“That was so much fun,” said an ecstatic Young. “I loved getting back behind the wheel of the FINDARANCH.com Texas Rig Equipment No. 20 Chevy and to get a top-10 finish – my best finish ever at Texas Motor Speedway – is such a thrill. I really can’t thank everyone at Young’s Motorsports enough, they work so hard for these truck teams day in and day out. It’s so great to get a good run in for them and in front of all of my family, friends and sponsors that were able to make it to the track.”
HILL EARNS TOP-15 FINISH DESPITE LATE RACE TIRE TROUBLES
Austin Hill made his fourth NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) start at Texas Motor Speedway this past weekend. After only getting in one practice session on Thursday due to heavy rain, the Winston, Ga., native qualified 22nd for the 167-lap PPG 400. He had a great run going, but unfortunately had a tire go down late in the race resulting in a 13th-place finish.
STAGE 1 RECAP:
· Started Stage 1: P22
· Finished Stage 1: P15
The opening stage was pretty uneventful for Hill. He stayed out during a couple of early cautions and was up to 12th by the halfway point of the stage. He pit under caution on Lap 30 for four tires and fuel and gained four positions in the final seven laps of Stage 1 to finish 15th.
STAGE 2 RECAP:
· Started Stage 2: P6
· Finished Stage 2: P4
When the caution was displayed for the end of Stage 1, crew chief Chad Kendrick opted not to bring the Ennis Steel No. 02 down pit road as a result of pitting just a few laps earlier. Hill was running 14th when the caution came out on Lap 74 and again stayed on track and restarted fourth for the one-lap shootout to end the middle stage. He held his position and was able to earn his first stage points of the season.
STAGE 3 RECAP:
· Started Stage 3: P14
· Finished Stage 3: P13
At the end of Stage 2 Hill brought the No. 02 Ennis Steel Chevrolet down pit road for a wedge adjustment, four fresh tires and fuel and restarted the final stage in 14th. During a caution on lap 106, Kendrick again called the 24-year-old to pit road for four tires, fuel and an adjustment to help with some loose conditions and they restarted in ninth. Unfortunately, on Lap 117 Hill reported he had a tire going down and brought the Ennis Steel No. 02 back to pit road under green for two right side tires. Despite being two laps down to the leaders, Hill was able to pick up a couple positions in the closing laps to earn a 13th-place finish.
“It was a bummer to have our night end that way,” said Hill. “We were running strong all night in the Ennis Steel Chevrolet and unfortunately got bit by a tire issue. But still, we were able to come out with a top-15 finish and finally able to earn some stage points tonight, so I will take it as momentum into Iowa next week.”
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