Todd Gilliland persevered through a wet and cold evening at Atlanta Motor Speedway to earn his first top-10 finish at the 1.5-mile oval. With qualifying washed out, Gilliland started in the 11th position. Trouble with the handling and slow restarts had Gilliland riding near the top-15 for most of the evening, but on the final restart Gilliland was able to make his way to the ninth position and hold it for his first top-10 of 2019.
Stage One Recap:
- Gilliland started the Ultimate Tailgating 200 in the 11th position, as the field was set per the rule book after qualifying was canceled due to a heavy mist throughout the day.
- Gilliland told crew chief Marcus Richmond that he was unable to get his Toyota Tundra to the bottom of the racing surface because of a loose handling condition, but he was able to work his way into the top-10 during long green flag runs, finishing the stage in the 7th position.
- Following the first stage, Richmond brought Gilliland to pit road for four fresh tires, fuel and adjustments to address the handling condition.
Stage Two Recap:
- The start of the second stage saw Gilliland in the sixth position, but difficult handling conditions on restarts caused him to slowly fall out of the top-10 after a caution on lap 54.
- The young driver finished the second stage in 11th position, and Richmond called him to pit road for adjustments, four Goodyear tires and Sunoco fuel.
- Gilliland reported that his Tundra was tight on exit of the corner and loose over the seams in the pavement.
Stage Three Recap:
- As the final 50-lap stage began, Gilliland restarted in 10th, but once again had trouble with the restart and fell back to the 17th position.
- With 37 laps to go, the No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra came to life and Gilliland began to march forward again.
- The caution flag flew with 18 to go and the No. 4 team again came to pit road for four fresh tires. A quick stop gained him five positions and Gilliland would restart in sixth.
- With the gain in position, Gilliland was able to avoid the wreck on the restart, which then brought out a red flag for cleanup and another for weather.
- Gilliland was able to hang on to a top-10 finish on the restart as conditions began to deteriorate and brought the No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra home in ninth.
KBM PR
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