Paludo Earns Fifth Top-10 Finish of Season, Gains Ground in Standings in Kentucky

Miguel Paludo and the No. 32 AccuDoc Solutions team showed consistency from beginning to end in the eighth race weekend of the season at Kentucky Speedway. After two solid practice sessions and a top-10 qualifying run, Paludo brought home a seventh-place finish and gained a position in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Driver Point Standings, now sitting eighth following the UNOH 225.

 

When the Turner Scott Motorsports (TSM) crew unloaded chassis TSM-600 from the No. 32 hauler, the truck was fast off the bat, landing second on the speed charts in the weekend’s opening practice session. Paludo followed up with the 10th-fastest laps in both final practice and qualifying, ensuring a solid start for the AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet. After taking the green flag, Paludo found that his Chevy Silverado was free on entry but good from the middle off. The loose condition caused Paludo to drop into the 13th spot after 10 laps, but the first caution flag of the evening on lap 27 allowed the team an opportunity to make adjustments. The Brazilian driver brought his truck into the pits for four tires, fuel and a track-bar adjustment, returning to the track in 12th.

 

Once green-flag racing resumed on lap 30, Paludo found that his Silverado was now too tight in Turns 1 and 2, but good in Turns 3 and 4. Exploring the racetrack for a line that worked for him, Paludo “found a little something” on lap 81, discovering a line that improved his lap times. A spin brought out the caution on lap 74 with Paludo still in the 12th position. Crew chief Jeff Hensley called his driver to pit road, and the TSM crew provided him with four tires, fuel and another track-bar adjustment. The team gained two spots on pit road, putting Paludo back on the track in 10th.

 

Just three laps later, the yellow flag waved again, this time for a spin directly in front of Paludo. Good communication from the team’s spotter and Paludo’s quick reaction time allowed him to avoid a potential wreck. Now scored in the eighth position, Paludo felt like his truck was really starting to come alive. Paludo improved to the seventh position before the final caution flag of the day waved on lap 109, and he told his team that the truck was the best it had been all day. Hensley made the call to bring Paludo into the pits for a two-tire stop without adjustments, and the AccuDoc Solutions Chevy team maintained their position for the last restart of the night on lap 113. After the field went green for the final time, Paludo drove away from the trucks behind him in the closing laps, ultimately crossing the finish line in seventh place, his fifth top-10 finish of the season.

 

“This was exactly the kind of night we needed,” said Paludo after the race. “We did everything we could do to get a top-10 finish and a lot of the guys we’re chasing made mistakes. We’re showing just how good we are as a team; we were good from the time we rolled off the hauler and we were good until we loaded it back up. We made good calls on pit road, made good adjustments, had good pit stops. This team is stronger than it has ever been and we’re showing consistency week after week. I can’t wait until Iowa.”

 

Paludo’s top-10 finish moves him up to eighth in the NCWTS Driver Point Standings, 19 points behind seventh. The NCWTS has a one-week break before returning to action at Iowa Speedway on July 13. The American Ethanol 200 presented by Enogen will air live on SPEED at 8:30 p.m. EDT.

TMS PR