Bad luck struck the No. 43 WinField team early at the Monster Mile. After avoiding contact with the wall from running into oil on the track, the WinField Ford suffered a cut tire on a restart. Armstrong made it back pit road without any damage and the crew changed tires. Despite losing laps, Armstrong had good speed and continued to battle hard to salvage a decent finish. Armstrong progressed throughout the race and finished in 20th position. He remains in the 13th position in the Championship Points Standings.
Armstrong started the race from the 20th position. Armstrong took advantage a strong start and moved into the 19th position. He maintained the position as the first caution of the day came on Lap 16 for a single car wreck on the back stretch. Armstrong stayed out during the yellow flag. The race restarted on Lap 20 with Armstrong in 18th position.
Shortly after the race restarted, the engine of a competitor expired right in front of Armstrong, spilling oil all over the racing surface. He was able to avoid contact but spun through the corner and came to rest in the grass. Armstrong was able to continue with no damage. As Armstrong refired the engine, one of the leaders blew a tire and made hard contact with the outside wall. The second caution flag of the day waved on Lap 25 to clean up the debris and fluid from both incidents. Crew Chief Frankie Kerr called Armstrong to pit on Lap 29. The WinField crew changed four tires, filled the fuel tank, made a wedge adjustment, and cleaned all the grass from the grill. The race restarted on Lap 32 with Armstrong in 18th position.
Shortly after the race restarted, Armstrong reported he felt the left rear tire going down. The spotter confirmed the report. Armstrong limped the WinField Ford back to pit lane under the green flag. The crew changed left side tires. Armstrong rejoined the field in 30th position three laps down. Kerr told Armstrong to "Keep charging. Our lap times are right there with the leaders. We'll get back in this." Armstrong moved into the 26th position before the third yellow flag of the day came on Lap 67. The caution served as the competition caution. With Armstrong now on a different pit cycle, Kerr elected to take the wave around to regain one of the lost laps. The race restarted on Lap 70 with Armstrong in 24th position two laps down.
Armstrong continued to progress, moving into 23rd position just three laps after the restart. Armstrong fought through heavy traffic over the 25 laps. The leaders caught him on Lap 83, putting the WinField Ford three laps down. Armstrong continued to fight and made his way into 22nd position before the fourth and final caution flag flew on 107 for a hard two car wreck on the backstretch. The wreck caused debris and fluid to cover the racing surface. The pits remained closed as the clean-up crews worked to clear surface. The pits finally opened six laps later. Kerr called Armstrong to pit road on Lap 113 for four tires, fuel, and a track bar adjustment. Armstrong would be able to make it to the end without stopping for fuel. With rain looming in the background, many cars choose to remain on track to retain track position. Just as the field was ready to restart the race, rain began to pour and brought out the red flag.
The rain stopped and the track safety crews were able to dry the racing surface. The race restarted on Lap 118 with Armstrong in 22nd position, the only car three laps down. Kerr reminded Armstrong that many cars would need to stop for fuel and stay out of the trouble. Armstrong maintained the 22nd position until Lap 180 when some of his competitors began to pit for fuel. Armstrong moved into the 21st position. On Lap 199, Armstrong moved into 20th position quickly gaining on 19th. He made it to the bumper of the next car for position but ran out of time as they crossed the start finish line. The checkered flag waved on Lap 200. He finished in 20th position. Armstrong remains 14th in the Championship Points Standings but gained points on the next three drivers ahead of him.
"Today was bittersweet." said Armstrong. "We didn't really know what to expect with no qualifying or practice and rain in the area This place is really tough. Practice here is valuable. It really helps you find your rhythm. The WinField Ford Mustang was really good right off of the truck. We ran into some oil on track and I was able to save it from hitting the wall or someone else. On the restart, we ran over something. The guys said there was a big hole in the tire. We were able to make it back to pit road to change the tires but we lost a couple laps in the process. From that point forward, we had great lap times. We were on pace with the Top-10 and Top-15 guys for the whole race, but just couldn't' get the cautions to fall our way to get back on the lead lap. We can't help running into some bad luck. But knowing we had a great car makes it so much more manageable. That's how we ended up with a Top-20 finish on what should have been a disaster of a day. We head to Charlotte next week. We've had good speed on the mile-and-a-half tracks. We're looking forward to a great run next week."
About Richard Petty Motorsports
A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneur Andrew Murstein, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. With a history of over 200 wins and business partnerships with national and global leaders, today the race operation fields two teams in competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Aric Almirola pilots the famous No. 43 Ford Fusion with primary partners Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force, STP, and Fresh From Florida, and Sam Hornish Jr. drives the No. 9 machine with primary partners Medallion Bank and Twisted Tea. In addition, Dakoda Armstrong wheels the No. 43 WinField Ford Mustang full-time in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.