After posting a 19th-place finish in last weekend’s event at Kansas Speedway, Eric McClure headed to Charlotte Motor Speedway with momentum on his side looking to improve on his past finishes at the 1.5-mile speedway. Qualifying 32nd, McClure was involved in an accident on lap 76, while running in the 20th position, that relegated him to a 32nd-place finish. Despite the finish, McClure was able to maintain the 19th-place position in the NASCAR Driver standings.
When the green flag waved to commence the Drive for the Cure 300, several cars stacked up just past the start/finish line causing a multi-car accident on the front stretch; McClure was involved and the No. 14 Camry suffered significant nose damage as a result. Nevertheless, the team was able to make repairs to the nose under caution, and when the race resumed on lap eight, they were scored in the 29th position.
When the event’s second caution flag waved on lap 16, McClure, who was battling a car that was a “tick” loose on entry, brought the No. 14 Hefty®/Reynolds Wrap® car to pit road for four tires, fuel, and a track-bar adjustment. When the race resumed on lap 21, McClure was scored in the 27th position.
As the race continued, the car’s handling became too tight in the center of the turns, yet McClure was still able to advance to the 26th position by lap 50. Shortly thereafter, green flag pit stops began and since McClure had visited pit road during the lap 16 caution, he was able to remain on -track longer than most of his competitors. Catching a much needed break, the event’s third caution flag waved on lap 68. This allowed McClure to visit pit road under yellow conditions. The team changed four tires, added fuel, and made another chassis adjustment in hopes of helping the now tight-handling car. When the race resumed on lap 73, McClure was scored in the 20th position.
Three laps later, McClure was involved in an accident off of turn four. Another competitor, who had just taken the wave around, took McClure and two other competitors four-wide causing a multi-car accident. With damage too severe to repair, McClure was forced to the garage area where, in the end, he would post a 32nd-place finish.
Eric McClure Quotes:
“I’m disappointed for the team. We had a solid run going considering the damage we got on lap one, and felt like we were in pretty good shape. It’s unfortunate that we were in the accident. Certainly different situations for different teams can cause chaos at times, but you hate for it to happen so early in the race. It was just a tough night for our Hefty®/Reynolds Wrap® team.”
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