Boyd would roll off from the 33rd position for the running of the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300. The green flag waved and it was deja vu all over again to the opening laps of Kansas. The 20 of Christopher Bell got loose and spun around in front of the entire field. Fortunately, most cars were able to escape relatively unharmed this time. On lap 13 caution waved for debris and again waved on lap 21 as the 11 of Ryan Truex & the 39 of Ryan Sieg made contact. Daniel Hemric went on to claim the stage one victory with Boyd staying put in the 33rd position.
Boyd radioed in saying he was very loose on corner entry and tight center off. Miller called for four tires, fuel, and adjustments for the Grunt Style Chevy and sent Boyd back out. On lap 81 the No. 9 of Tyler Reddick made contact, sending Joey Gase around right in front of Boyd. Somehow, Boyd steered clear of the spinning Gase and managed to keep his car off the wall as well. Cole Custer won stage two with Boyd in the 32nd position.
The final stage began and trouble once gain ensued. On lap 96 the 19 of Brandon Jones made contact with the 5 of Michael Annett, bringing out yet another caution. On lap 120 Boyd came over the radio extremely frustrated with the handling of his Grunt Style Chevrolet, as he was still in the 32nd position. Spotter Chris Monez and Crew Chief Jason Miller did their best to pump up their driver. The wrecks were not over. Sure enough, on lap 126 the 11 of Ryan Truex found the wall once again. Miller elected for Boyd to stay out and take a wave around. Boyd was now up to P30. On lap 134 one of the championship favorites Christopher Bell, backed his No. 20 hard into the wall. Three more cautions would wave for a total of 13 cautions in this attrition filled race. After a dramatic last lap pass, Cole Custer went on to win his first race of the season and punch his ticket to Homestead. Boyd was patient, kept his Grunt Style Chevy in one piece, and managed to bring home a respectful 25th place finish.
After the race Boyd reflected, “We just really struggled with the handling of our car today. I was surprised because we showed some decent speed in practice, but I just could not go anywhere during the race. My guys did a great job helping me keep my head in the game when I was getting frustrated and fortunately it worked out. This is a really fast and tricky race track, so there’s not a whole lot of forgiveness when you get up out of the groove. Overall we will take another top 25 and get ready to finish these last two races in this 2018 season strong!”
After a cautioned filled race, Boyd manages a 25th place finish at Texas Motor Speedway and remains 25th in driver standings. The NASCAR Xfinity Series will return to action next week at ISM Raceway for one last race before the finale at Homestead. Race coverage of the Whelen Trusted to Perform 200 will begin 3:30 PM ET Saturday November 10th on NBC.
Spencer Boyd Racing PR/Spencer Boyd Racing Photo
