Brad Keselowski Racing NCWTS Post-Race Report: Texas Motor Speedway
No. 29 Cooper Standard Ford F-150
Chase Briscoe was anxious to return to Texas Motor Speedway and attempted to capture the victory that eluded him by inches earlier this year. Briscoe struggled with the handling of his Cooper Standard Ford F-150 and lost track position early in the race, but rallied back to grab a fourth-place finish in the JAG Metals 350 Friday night.
Briscoe took the green from the 10th position and immediately reported to crew chief Buddy Sisco that his truck fired off “wrecking loose.” A caution on lap five gave the Brad Keselowski Racing team the opportunity to adjust the handling, and Sisco called for an adjustment-only pit stop, opting for both wedge and track-bar adjustments. As one of the only drivers to visit pit road, Briscoe lined up 29th when the field saw the green flag on lap 10. Briscoe worked his way up to 16th before the caution flag was displayed on lap 27, and he came in for service once again, this time taking four tires, fuel and a track-bar adjustment. Briscoe maintained his position on pit road, and was able to gain one more spot before closing out the first stage in 15th. Briscoe relayed that the No. 29 was sideways in the center of the turns and tight off, but Sisco made the call to keep his driver on the track at an attempt to gain track position.
Kicking off the second stage from the eighth position, Briscoe gained two spots before the caution flag waved on lap 59. Still needing his truck to be a little bit tighter, Briscoe once again pitted, taking four tires, fuel and an air-pressure adjustment. Scored 11th on the restart, the Cooper Standard Ford F-150 dropped to 14th by the conclusion of Stage 2. The BKR team made to call to remain on the track, and Briscoe lined up fifth for the final green flag of the race on lap 77.
Briscoe patiently and persistently stalked the leaders, closing in on them from the third position when green flag pit stops began on lap 109. He took over the lead on lap 117, and then pulled off the track for the final stop of the night on the following lap. Sisco called for right-side tires and fuel, and Briscoe returned to the track inside the top 15. Briscoe picked his way through the field, emerging fourth when pit stops finally cycled through. Unable to make up any more ground, Briscoe crossed the finish line fourth, earning his eighth top five of the season.
Chase Briscoe: “I’m really proud of our team’s effort tonight. I wish I could have gotten our Cooper Standard Ford F-150 to Victory Lane; we’ve been so close to winning all year, and I’ve been waiting for a second chance at this place to get the win we missed by inches last time. Clean air meant everything tonight. It’s amazing how much of a difference there was between running in the top five and running back behind all those guys. We lost a lot of track position at the beginning of the race because we were just so loose. I think I probably could have been a little bit more aggressive on pit road during that last pit stop under green. We still didn’t have the best handling truck at the end, but we had a lot of speed and could have done something if a caution had tightened up the field. It says a lot that this team is shutting down in a few weeks and we’re still bringing fast trucks to the track and doing everything we can to win.”
Starting Position: 10th
Finishing Position: 4th
Status: Running
Stage Wins: 0
Laps Led: 0
Points Position: 7th
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