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NASCAR XFINITY Series Race Report

Track:  Road America

Race:   Road America 180 Fired Up By Johnsonville  

Date:   August 29, 2015

No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang – Ryan Blaney

Start:  3rd

Finish: 2nd

Status: Running

Laps Completed:  45/45

Laps Led:   0

Owners’ Points Position:  1^st (+86)

Recap:  Ryan Blaney and the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang battled for the lead late in the race, challenging for the lead on the final lap, but ultimately finished the Road America 180 in the second position on Saturday afternoon. Blaney started the event from the third position after NASCAR XFINITY Series qualifying was canceled due to rain and the starting lineup was set per the rule book.  Once the race started and Blaney got settled in, he communicated his Ford Mustang needed to be a little tighter in order to turn better.  On lap 12, crew chief Greg Erwin called Blaney down pit road for a green-flag stop for minor adjustments to tighten Blaney’s Mustang.  Blaney would rejoin the field in the 14^th position until green-flag stops cycled through and Blaney found himself in the third position. Blaney was called down pit road once again on lap 29, which put the team with in their fuel window for the finish. Blaney raced his way to 10^th  until the final caution flew on lap 34. Under the extended yellow-flag period, a few cars in front of Blaney had mechanical and fuel issues, which allowed Blaney to move up to the fifth position on the restart. Once the race restarted with four laps remaining, Blaney raced his way to the second position and put pressure on the race leader, Paul Menard, but couldn’t make the pass before the checker flag flew. The second-place finish propelled the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford to an 86-point lead in the XFINITY Series Owners’ point standings over the No. 60 from Roush-Fenway Racing.

Quote:  “We had a really good Ford Mustang today. We were up front all day and overall it was a great race. Road course races are a little tricky with the different pit strategy and fuel mileage. Greg’s (Erwin) call to bring me down pit road on lap 29 was a really good call.  It put us right where we wanted to be, but that extended caution really didn’t help us. But in the end, we still had the opportunity to race for the win. I just couldn’t get to Paul Menard to make the pass for the win, but it was still a great day for this Discount Tire team.  I really like road courses because they are something different and I wish I was in more than just one a year, but I really have to thank Ford, Discount Tire and Penske for letting me drive. It was a good and fun day.”