DOVER, Del. (May 6, 2019)
Box Score Info:
Date: May 6, 2019 (Postponed from May 5, 2019)
Event: Gander RV 400 (Round 11 of 36)
Series: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Track: Dover International Speedway (1.0-mile Concrete Oval)
Format: 400 Laps (Stages: 120 laps / 120 laps / 160 laps)
Start/Finish: 15th/6th (Running, completed 400 of 400 laps)
Point Standings: 16th (264 points, 196 points out of 1st)
Race Winner: Martin Truex, Jr.
Stage 1 Winner: Joey Logano
Stage 2 Winner: Martin Truex, Jr.
Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-120)
· Erik Jones started the race from 15th and ended stage one ninth.
· With rain postponing the Gander RV 400 at Dover International Speedway to Monday afternoon, Jones and the No. 20 Sport Clips Toyota Camry rolled off from the 15th position and was able to advance to 11th when the competition caution waved on lap 40 due to the rain on Sunday and overnight in the Dover area. Crew chief Chris Gayle called Jones to pit road for four tires, fuel and adjustments to help with the loose-handling condition. Jones restarted the race on lap 45 from the 11th spot.
· Falling back to 14th during the run, Jones was scored 13th when the caution waved on lap 105. Radioing the team that the Sport Clips Camry wasn’t bad, but that it was just hard to pass on the track, the team called Jones to pit road for four tires, fuel and another round of adjustments. The race restarted on lap 110 with Jones 12th.
· A caution with five laps to go in the stage set up a one-lap shootout to end the stage. Jones was able to advance to ninth when the caution waved on lap 120 to end the first stage. The team opted to stay out under the stage break.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 121-240
· Jones started the second stage from the ninth position and finished the stage 10th.
· The race restarted on lap 129 to start stage two with Jones in the seventh position.
· With a loose-handling Camry, Jones slipped to 11th before making a green-flag stop on lap 180 for four tires, fuel and another set of adjustments. Once the field cycled through stops, Jones was scored 10th.
· The caution flag waved on lap 240 to end the stage with the No. 20 Sport Clips Toyota Camry team in the 10th position. Jones radioed the team that his Camry was too tight to run the top line, but that he wasn’t too bad, just needed track position. Gayle called Jones to pit road for four tires, fuel and another round of adjustments.
Stage 3 Recap (Laps 241-400)
· Jones started the final stage from the 10th position and crossed the finish line with a solid sixth-place finish.
· With the final stage going green on lap 249, the caution was displayed on lap 265 for teammate Denny Hamlin. Jones was sitting in the ninth position and after opting to stay out under the caution, restarted the race from eighth on lap 269.
· Moving up to seventh on lap 270, Jones maintained his position until he was called to pit road on lap 320 for his second green-flag stop of the day. Changing four tires, adding fuel and making a round of adjustments to continue improving the handling of the No. 20 Sport Clips Camry, Jones returned to the track and once pit stops cycled through the field, was scored in the sixth position.
· Unable to gain any track positions in the final 50 laps of the race, Jones maintained his position to cross the finish line with a sixth-place finish.
Additional Notes
· The finish marked Jones fourth top-10 finish of the season.
· Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex, Jr. won the race with Kyle Busch finishing 10th and Hamlin finishing 22nd.
Next Race: Teams now head to Kansas Speedway on Saturday, May 11, 2019. The race will be broadcast at 7:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1, Motor Racing Network (MRN) and SIRIUS XM Channel 90.