Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):
● Cole Custer started 35th and finished 23rd.
● Custer pitted from the top-15 during the competition caution for fuel, four tires and adjustments to help with his tight-handling condition. Restarted 13th.
● After several starts and stops for lightning in the area, which delayed the race for over two hours, the 400-mile event resumed on lap 37 for the remainder of the scheduled distance.
● On lap 55, Custer told the crew his Jacob Construction/HaasTooling.com Mustang was tight while running 18th.
● Custer ended Stage 1 in 23rd with a tight-handling Mustang.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81-160):
● Custer started in 20th, finished 24th.
● On lap 96, Custer reported his No. 41 Ford Mustang remained tight while running in the 20th spot.
● Custer made a scheduled green-flag pit stop on lap 119 from 24th for fuel, four tires and adjustments to help with his tight condition.
● During the Stage 2 break the California native pitted from 24th to improve his tight-handling Mustang.
Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-267):
● Custer started 25th, finished 22nd.
● Under caution on Lap 170 Custer reported his Mustang was still tight and crew chief Mike Shiplett made the call for Custer to stay out and take the wave around to get back on the lead lap.
● Lap 213, Custer visited pit road for fuel, four tires and adjustments to continue to help his tight condition.
● The remainder of the event ran under green and Custer finished 22nd in first Cup Series start Homestead-Miami.
Notes:
● Custer made his 15th career NASCAR Cup Series start and his first at Homestead.
● Denny Hamlin won the Homestead 400 to score his 40th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third of the season and his third at Homestead. His margin of victory over second-place Chase Elliott was .895 of a second.
● There were six caution periods for a total of 27 laps.
● Only 15 of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● Kevin Harvick remains the championship leader after Homestead with an eight-point advantage over second-place Elliott.
Cole Custer, Driver of the No. 41 Jacob Construction/HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“The guys did a great job staying with me all day. We fought a tight car for most of the day, and we’re working hard to figure these cars out, but I can’t thank the guys enough for hanging with me all day.”
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the GEICO 500 on Sunday, June 21 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The race starts at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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