No. 97 WeatherTech Chevrolet Camaro
- Shane van Gisbergen qualified 34th for the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
- Van Gisbergen quickly moved his way to 27th, when the first caution occurred on lap four. Van Gisbergen battled to stay on the lead lap throughout the stage, but ultimately fell off the lead lap on lap 42. When the second caution flag flew on lap 54, Van Gisbergen reported the WeatherTech Chevy was loose on entry and lacked grip, but had good speed overall. The No. 97 WeatherTech team opted to pit under caution for adjustments and fuel, slotting Van Gisbergen to rejoin the field in 27th, one lap down. Van Gisbergen took the green-white-checkered flag in 30th to end the first stage.
- The No. 97 WeatherTech team opted to pit at the stage break for tires, fuel, and adjustments, starting the second stage in 29th. During the first caution of the stage, the No. 97 team opted to pit for adjustments and fuel as Van Gisbergen reported the car was still lacking overall grip. Van Gisbergen was in the lucky dog position when a timely caution allowed the No. 97 to rejoin the field on the lead lap, restarting the stage in 27th. He battled to maintain position as the car continued to lack grip during the green flag run, but when a yellow flew on lap 154, the No. 97 team came to pit road for fresh tires, fuel, and adjustments, restarting 22nd. As the stage concluded, Van Gisbergen was scored 23rd.
- The No. 97 WeatherTech team chose to stay out during the stage break caution, and Van Gisbergen started the final stage in 19th, entering the top 20 for the first time in the race. The fourth caution came out on lap 200 of the race, and the No. 97 team chose to stay out, restarting the stage in 20th. Van Gisbergen continued to run in the top 20 for all of the final stage, logging 100 laps in the top 20 for his first appearance at the half-mile track. The No. 97 fell off the lead lap with 15 laps remaining in the race but maintained position and ultimately took the checkered flag in 18th.
“This was an awesome race, I love this track! A little bummed we got lapped there at the end but got better all day and just had a blast. My No. 97 WeatherTech team has been awesome and we keep learning and getting better throughout the year, so looking forward to having some fun in the playoffs next weekend at Kansas.”
– Shane van Gisbergen
No. 11 Alloy Employer Services Chevrolet Camaro
- Josh Williams qualified 32nd for the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
- Williams, who was sent to the rear for unapproved adjustments, moved into 34th by the race’s first caution on lap four. The green flag flew again on lap nine, and Williams continued his charge forward, taking 28th on lap 17. After taking 26th, the caution came out on lap 53 for an incident with the leader and lapped traffic. After a lengthy deliberation between Williams and crew chief Eddie Pardue, the No. 11 Alloy Employer Services Camaro stayed out on the track and restarted from 16th with 20 laps left in Stage 1. He lost positions en route to a 19th-place finish.
- Williams pitted for tires and fuel and restarted for Stage 2 from 23rd on lap 96. After taking 19th, the yellow flag flew on lap 121, and Williams stayed out. After trying to dial in his brake bias towards the front to help the Camaro’s balance, he restarted in 19th with 44 laps to go in the second stage. Falling to 22nd, the caution displayed on lap 154, and Williams pitted for tires, fuel, and a wedge adjustment aimed at freeing the Chevy up. He fired back off in 21st with nine laps remaining in Stage 2 and took the green-white-checkered in 22nd.
- Williams restarted for the final stage in 18th and stayed there until the lap-200 caution. Pardue called the No. 11 down pit road for tires, fuel, and a track bar adjustment. It was the team’s final set of sticker Goodyear tires. The race went back under green-flag conditions with 94 to go; Williams restarted 26th. He began climbing but stalled out once he reached 21st, getting put one lap down on lap 265. Williams took the checkered flag running in 21st.
“We made a lot of adjustments that didn’t end up working out for us as the race went on. Just overall, not the best day for us. Hoping to end the season on a strong note these last bunch of races.”
– Josh Williams
No. 16 Barger Precast Chevrolet Camaro
- AJ Allmendinger qualified fifth for the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
- Allmendinger fired off loose before a caution for debris on lap four. He restarted fifth on lap nine and eventually fell one spot, before the second caution came out on lap 53. Allmendinger stayed out and restarted fifth with 20 laps remaining in the stage and fought to finish it in fourth place.
- Allmendinger pitted during the stage break for tires, fuel, and air pressure and track bar adjustments to help with rear grip. He started the second stage from 16th. After a caution on lap 121, Allmendinger reported the car felt very stiff and was chattering. He restarted 13th before the race’s second caution came on lap 154 with Allmendinger in 11th. Crew chief Alex Yontz made the call for Allmendinger to pit for tires, fuel, and air pressure, track bar and wedge adjustments to help the handling of the No. 16 Barger Precast Chevy. He restarted in 14th with nine to go and went on to finish the second stage in the same spot.
- Struggling to lean on the No. 16 Chevy, Allmendinger pitted during the second stage break for tires, fuel and another substantial adjustment, before starting the final stage from 26th place. The loan caution of Stage 3 came on lap 200, and Allmendinger stayed out and restarted 15th. He radioed that the adjustments made under the stage break had helped the handling of No. 16 Chevy, and over the course of the final 100 laps, Allmendinger broke into the top 10 and finished in 10th.
“We tried something different coming into Bristol, and from the moment we unloaded, we were just hanging on. Myself, Alex Yontz, and all the men and women at Kaulig Racing did everything we could. Getting a top ten in the Barger Precast Chevy was a win for us.”
– AJ Allmendinger
Kaulig Racing PR
