TY DILLON OVERCOMES UNTIMELY CAUTION TO FINISH 22ND AT DOVER
Player Management International Media Release
Dover, DE (October 1, 2017) – When Germain Racing made the trip to Dover in June, they found their driver, Ty Dillon, in the lead for 27 of the final laps before being collected in a last lap crash that relegated the hard-charging rookie to a 14th place finish. Dillon and the GEICO team arrived in Dover this weekend for race number 29 of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season looking to capitalize on what they learned at the track in the spring.
When practice got underway on Friday, Dillon posted the 23rd fastest practice time as he hurriedly made his way around the fast, one-mile high-banked oval. Later in the day, qualifying would issue the team a bit of a setback when the GEICO Chevy was dealt a 29thplace starting position for Sunday’s Apache Warrior 400.
Blue skies and perfect temperatures set the stage for an exciting afternoon of racing when the Monster Energy Series drivers took to the starting grid on Sunday. Dillon and his No. 13 GEICO Chevy started 29th, but remained there only momentarily. When the green flag turned the field loose for 400-laps and 400-miles of racing, he immediately began moving forward, gathering four positions in as many laps, moving into the top-25 and setting his sights on the front of the field.
A long green flag run ensued and Dillon delivered his GEICO Chevy to pit road on lap 85, as green flag stops got underway. The Germain Racing crew outfitted him with four fresh tires, fuel and adjustments before promptly returning him to the racing surface. Unfortunately, no sooner had Dillon exited pit road than the race’s first caution flag of the day flew, a tough break leaving the driver multiple laps down to the field in the 30th position. Dillon would spend the balance of his day attempting to recover. Despite the early setback, he remained focused, pedaling the GEICO machine hard around the Monster Mile, turning in quick lap times and recovering positions. When the checkered flag was displayed, Dillon managed to cross the finish line in the 22nd position, salvaging an otherwise challenging day.
"Today was a grind. Dover is always a challenge and when you have long green flag runs, it's hard to make up ground,” Dillon said after the race. “The GEICO Chevy was pretty good though. We would fire off a bit tight, but I could keep up by adjusting my trackbar. The car would be just a little free by the end of a run, but overall we needed more speed and track position. We were able to get a decent result and have a solid effort from start to finish."
Ty Dillon and the No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS will hit the track at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the weekend’s opening practice session on Friday, October 6th, at 1:30 PM (ET). Qualifying will follow at 7:20 PM (ET).
The Bank of America 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race is on Sunday, October 8th, and it will be televised live on NBC beginning at 2:00 PM (ET). The Performance Racing Network (PRN) will carry the live radio broadcast, along with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.
Please visit www.GEICO.com to learn how you could save money on more than just auto insurance.
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To learn more about Germain Racing, please visit: www.germainracing.com