Reed earns an 11th-place finish at Charlotte

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In: Xfinity Series News

Roush Fenway Racing driver Ryan Reed and the No. 16 Lilly Diabetes American Diabetes Association team finished 11th on Friday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway after starting in the same position.  

“I felt like we had a better Lilly Diabetes American Diabetes Association Ford Mustang than that on the long run,” said Reed.  “That last caution didn’t do us any favors because we were making up a lot of time on the track.  It was a solid day, a lot of progression, so there are a lot of things to look forward to and be really excited about.  I feel like the changes we made earlier in the year are starting to pay off, so I’m looking forward to better things.”

Reed started the 200-lap event from the 11th position, just behind Roush Fenway Racing teammates Bubba Wallace and Elliott Sadler. Within the first 20 laps, Reed reported the car was extremely tight and continuing to get tighter. He settled into the 15th position early on and by Lap 42 reported the car was so tight it was tough to drive.

Six laps later, the caution flag flew for the first time, allowing crew chief Chad Norris to bring his driver down pit road to make adjustments. The team pitted from the 17th position on Lap 50 for four tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment in the left rear of the car. The team’s quick work put Reed in the 14th position for the restart on Lap 52.

On the following green-flag run, Reed continued to report that the car’s handling was tight. By the halfway point, Reed ran 16th and said that the car was hard to turn when he was under throttle.

The team’s only green-flag stop of the day came on Lap 102. Reed pitted for a track bar adjustment, tires and fuel. Twenty laps later, he had made his way up to the 13th position and was gaining ground.

The second caution of the night came on Lap 141 while Reed was running 13th. The team brought him down pit road under caution for a slight track bar adjustment, four fresh tires and fuel. Reed told Norris that the car’s handling was pretty close, but he was a little free. He restarted 12th on Lap 146.

Five laps later, the caution was displayed again. Reed ran 11th and had no complaints about the handling of his No. 16 Lilly Diabetes American Diabetes Association Ford Mustang. Norris brought Reed down pit road for four fresh tires and fuel. He restarted 10th with 44 laps to go in the race.

In the last 50 laps, Reed battled for position with Kasey Kahne and teammate Elliott Sadler, eventually passing Kahne and finishing door-to-door with Sadler for an 11th-place finish on Friday night.

Reed remains 10th in the NASCAR XFINITY Series championship standings after his top-15 finish at Charlotte. Reed will compete in a double header at Kansas Speedway next weekend with the ARCA Racing Series event on Friday, October 16th and the NASCAR XFINITY Series event on Saturday, October 17th.

RFR PR

Speedway Digest Staff
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