Gray Gaulding and his No. 08 GPS PURE team started from the 15th position for the first of four road course races on the NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule. The first stage started off hectic with three cautions flags. On lap 11 Gaulding had advanced a few spots to the 12th position when the first caution of the day waved. On lap 14 the second caution of the day waved after the 4 sent the 7 car spinning through the bus stop. Gaulding was able to avoid the early chaos and finish the first stage in the 9th position, accumulating two precious stage points.
Gaulding started stage two from the 19th position after a few of the leaders stayed on track after the opening stage break. On lap 34 the fourth caution of the day waved after the 18 car suffered mechanical issues. With only 4 laps remaining in the second stage, Gray Gaulding restarted from the 18th position. At the end of the stage the 08 team came across the line in the 17th position.
Crew Chief Patrick Donahue called for his driver to stay on track, which put the 08 starting the final stage from the 11th position. On lap 57, Donahue called Gaulding to the pits for their last scheduled stop of the day. On lap 69 debris covered the middle of the bus stop, which brought out the sixth caution of the day. The 08 stayed out on track under the caution and restarted the race from the 7th position with only 10 laps remaining. On lap 72 the 98 car made contact with the 11 car entering turn 1, triggering a multi-car accident. Gaulding was able to steer clear of the carnage, but lost valuable track position in the progress. Gaulding was in the thick of the battle for a top ten position on the last restart until the 20 car got turned sideways in front of the entire pack entering the esses. The 20 miraculously was able to keep from going around; however, the loss of momentum shuffled Gaulding back through the pack for the final laps. Gaulding was able to fight his way to finish in the 15th position. The result marked the team’s tenth top-15 finish of the season. With only 6 races remaining until the playoffs, Gaulding remains 13th in the NASCAR Xfinity Series point standings and trails Brandon Jones by 102 points after the Glen.
Gray Gaulding:
“I thought we had a really good day. I can’t thank GPS PURE and all my guys enough for putting together an awesome race car. Patrick and the guys called a great race, but unfortunately that last wreck with Christopher Bell, we just lost a lot of track position trying to miss that wreck. I don’t know how he saved it, but he did and I just couldn’t recover. I felt like we should have finished maybe tenth or eleventh, but overall I can’t say enough about our partners GPS Pure, Panini, World Wide Safety, everyone that supports us. We can’t hang our heads low because we had a good race car, we ran up front all day and unfortunately it just didn’t work out at the end. Stuff happens, but we’ll move on to next week.”
Bobby Dotter Thoughts on the 08 Team:
“I was really impressed with the 08 team again today. They proved they were a top ten team today. Unfortunately, we were just on the wrong side trying to miss the 20 car and we got shuffled back. I’m excited to bring this car to Mid-Ohio next week and duplicate our performance today.”
Ray Black Jr. started from the 24th position for the 82 lap sprint at the Glen. On lap 11, the 07 was scored in the 32nd position. On lap 14 caution waved for the 7 car in the bus stop. At the end of the first stage, Black moved up to the 26th position.
Black started the second stage from the 26th position. On lap 34 Black had worked his way up to the 22nd position before caution waved for the 18 car. After a four lap shootout to end stage two, Black was in the 21st position. Jason Miller called Black to the pits for four tires and fuel at the conclusion of the second stage.
The 07 team restarted the final stage from the 25th position. On lap 69 caution waved for debris in the bus stop. Ray Black Jr. had worked his way up to the 12th position before the caution. Miller called for Black to pit under caution for their last stop of the day. With 10 laps remaining in the race, Black restarted in the 24th position. On lap 72 there was a multi-car pile up in turn 1, which Black managed to work his way through unscathed. With 7 laps remaining, Black restarted from the 23rd position. Ray Black Jr. was able to keep his no. 07 Isokern Fireplaces & Chimneys Chevrolet in one piece and finished in the 22nd position.
Ray Black Jr:
“We had a great day until the driver made a mistake. Unfortunately, we were unable to rebound, but I’m excited for Mid-Ohio next week!”
Bobby Dotter Thoughts on the 07 Team:
“The 07 team had a solid performance overall today. Ray did a great job keeping the car out of trouble and Jason called a great race. Those last couple cautions got us shuffled back a little at the end, otherwise I think we could have managed a top-15. Excited for Mid-Ohio!
Looking Ahead:
SS Green Light Racing drivers Gray Gaulding and Ray Black Jr. are currently 13th and 17th respectively in the NASCAR Xfinity Series points standings. With Watkins Glen in the books, the teams will shift their attention to another road course with Mid-Ohio next on the agenda. Coverage of the B&L Transport 170 at Mid-Ohio will begin Saturday August 10th at 3:00 PM ET on NBCSN.
SS Greenlight Racing PR
