The NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) made its second and final stop of the 2014 season at Chicagoland Speedway for the Jimmy Johns Freaky Fast 300. Dylan Kwasniewski and the No. 31 AccuDoc Solutions/Rockstar Energy Drink Chevrolet team looked to build upon his first-career start at the 1.5-mile speedway earlier this season. Kwasniewski posted the third-quickest lap in what would be the only practice session held on Friday, with rain washing out the second scheduled practice. The strong practice set the No. 31 team up for a great qualifying session allowing Kwasniewski to advance to the final round of knockout qualifying, where he laid down the 12th-fastest lap. When the race began, Kwasniewski fought the handling of his racecar throughout the afternoon but was ultimately able to recover in the race’s final 30 laps, resulting in a 17th-place finish.
As the race began, Kwasniewski quickly settled into the 15th position, looking to get a feel for the ever-changing track conditions. On lap 20, Kwasniewski slipped to the 20th position, reporting to the crew that the No. 31 Chevrolet was battling a loose condition. The first pit stop of the race came on lap 25, and crew chief Shannon Rursch elected to take four tires and fuel along with track-bar and air-pressure adjustments. The changes helped Kwasniewski a great deal, and by lap 60 he was back up to the 16th position on the racetrack. Another caution flew on lap 60, where Rursch made even more changes, looking to help improve the No. 31 Chevy. By lap 100, Kwasniewski was up to 15th and holding strong inside the top 15. Kwasniewski remained in-and-around the top 15 for the next 50 laps, until another caution flew on lap 153. Rursch elected for fuel only, in turn putting Kwasniewski up to eighth on the racetrack. The decision to save tires for the team’s final pit stop pushed Kwasniewski back in the field a bit, as fellow competitors behind the No. 31 had fresh Goodyear tires. Kwasniewski was able to get on the same tire strategy as the other drivers when the final caution of the afternoon flew on lap 166. The new tires allowed Kwasniewski to work back through the field in the races final 30 laps and bring home a 17th place finish at Chicagoland Speedway.
Dylan Kwasniewski on his 17th place finish at Chicagoland:
“That was an interesting day for our No. 31 Accudoc Solutions/Rockstar Energy Drink team. We had a fast racecar all weekend long and I felt great about our chances heading into the race. Unfortunately, with the track conditions, we fought the handling of our racecar throughout the day. We had a quick car in the closing laps, but we just ran out of time to get back to the front. I’m really proud of this entire team and how hard they’ve worked all season long. I’m looking forward to the final few races of the season and bringing home some more solid runs.”
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