An afternoon of solid, steady driving earned Kevin Lepage a 20^th-place finish in Saturday’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 Nationwide Series race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Lepage drove the JD Motorsports with Gary Keller No. 4 Chevrolet for the first time this season.

Lepage started 39^th and rolled forward throughout the 94-lap chase, finishing a strong run on the lead lap.

“It was a good day for us with the 4 car,” said team owner Johnny Davis. “Kevin did a nice job, stayed out of trouble and brought it home clean. It was a fun day to have Gary Keller represented so prominently on the car and to have a good run with it.”

AJ Allmendinger won the race, surviving a green-white-checkered finish to outrun Michael McDowell.

The series moves on to Bristol Motor Speedway for an Aug. 23 race.

JD Motorsports PR

Mike Wallace was rolling along early in Saturday’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200, picking his way through the field with a good finish in sight. Then, in a heartbeat, his run stalled.

The transmission in Wallace’s Drive Sober Or Get Pulled Over Chevrolet exploded, sending Wallace onto pit road with smoke escaping from his car and repairs necessary.

“We were running around 15^th at the time,” Wallace said. “We were going to have a decent day. But we can’t find any luck. We did get back out.”

Wallace returned to the track and managed a 33^rd-place finish.

The race was the first Nationwide Series event on the 2.25-mile, 13-turn Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

AJ Allmendinger emerged as the winner after a green-white-checkered finish extended the 90-lap race to 94 laps.

The series moves on to Bristol Motor Speedway for an Aug. 23 race.

JD Motorsports PR

SOME EARLY PIT STOPS, BUT THEN APPARENTLY AN ENGINE PROBLEM WHAT HAPPENED?
“Yeah, we were just putting ourselves in position for later in the race with those early stops.  Then we had an issue there with the engine as I came out of the pits and got back up to speed dropped a couple of cylinders.  We were trying to get it figured out and see what would happen.  On my way into the pits it finally locked up and that’s the end of it.  Unfortunate day, but I’m happy that we have had such a strong opening part of the season and we have points on our side and some wins on side so we are not in jeopardy of anything going into the Chase.”

DO YOU EVER JUST SHAKE YOUR HEAD AND WONDER IF THIS PLACE HAS IT IN FOR YOU?
“It does.  It’s going to make it all the sweeter when we are able to win.”

ONCE AGAIN AT MICHIGAN YOUR DAY IS OVER EARLY.  I SAW YOU TALKING TO THE ENGINEERS, WHAT DID THEY SAY WENT WRONG?

 “The engine broke there.  I guess when we came in for a green flag pit stop something started then and made it a few more laps and didn’t really notice anything off.  Then it finally dropped a cylinder or two down the backstretch.  Definitely an unfortunate thing but we had plenty of speed in the car and I think we were going to be a factor with this Kobalt Tools Chevrolet.”

WERE YOU GUYS MAYBE TRYING SOMETHING NEW FOR THE CHASE? 

“Not that I am aware of.  You know, this track is hard on engines and these guys will figure out what went on there.  Days like today, I am thankful for the big point’s lead that we have and the bonus points we have been able to accumulate to get us to this position for the Chase.  It happens and I hope to get all this stuff out of the way now although I hate losing momentum going into the Chase.  It’s nice to roll in there hot and I think we had a chance to win today.  We will dust ourselves off and go again next week.”

CAN YOU TALK US THROUGH WHAT HAPPENED?  WHAT DID YOU FEEL?
“Coming down the back straightaway I felt it drop a couple of cylinders and knew we were in trouble.  So brought it to pit road and unfortunately it finally broke all the way and locked up.  It would be nice to have salvaged something and maybe pulled the down cylinder parts out you know the valve train parts out and get back out on the track, but the engine didn’t live long enough once it broke.  These things break pretty quick and that was the end of it.”

IS THAT THE ENGINE THAT YOU HAD IN THE PRIMARY CAR?
“I am not 100 percent sure, but Jamie Little (ESPN Anchor) just said that it was a new engine and it wasn’t the one in the primary, but I don’t know for sure.”

ARE YOU AT ALL WORRIED THAT AS GOOD AS A SEASON YOU ARE HAVING LIKE WEIRD THINGS KEEP HAPPENING TO YOU EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE THAT COULD CARRY OVER INTO THE CHASE AT ALL?
“When I look back most of it is self-inflicted.  Even though it’s an engine failure we will be able to trace back why and what.  Human hands are on these things assembling them and it could be in that or it could have been a simple part failure.  The bulk of the stuff has been human error.  I’m not overly concerned.  I hate having momentum not work in our favor late in the regular season.  I think we would have had a very strong race today if not a win.  That momentum is key rolling into the Chase.  That is the biggest downfall to me.”

Team Chevy Racing PR

Despite having no road-course experience prior to this season, Larson came to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Mid-Ohio) for the Nationwide Children's Hospital 200 looking for a solid finish in his No. 32 McDonald's Chevrolet Camaro. After doing well in Thursday's test sessions and finishing 12th and seventh in Friday's two practice sessions, Larson earned his best qualifying effort of the season, starting the 90-lap race from the fourth position. An incident on lap one left Larson three laps down, but the rookie got back onto the lead lap and worked his way up to the top five before a wild last lap left him with a 14th-place finish.

After taking the green flag from the fourth spot, contact from a competitor sent Larson spinning into the wall on the first lap. He brought his No. 32 Chevy to the pits and his No. 32 McDonald's team began to work feverishly to get Larson back on track. Larson's spin did not bring out the caution flag, so the Turner Scott Motorsports team was forced to work under green-flag conditions, and the 21-year-old returned to the track three laps down, in 40th position. By the time the first caution flag was displayed on lap 20, Larson was in the 38th position. Despite running lap times as quick as the top-five cars, Larson was still caught three laps down. Most of the lead-lap cars pitted, but two remained on track, so Larson was not able to utilize the wave around. Instead, he came back to pit road for four tires and fuel.

When the caution flag was displayed again on laps 27 and 30, Larson was unable to utilize the wave around or receive the free pass from NASCAR, so crew chief Trent Owens called his driver to the pits under both cautions for fuel and continued repairs to his McDonald's machine. On lap 33, Larson restarted in the 37th position and was still scored three laps down. The field returned to yellow five laps later, and Larson received the free pass. After pitting for fuel, Larson restarted in 35th position, two laps down, on lap 41. Four laps later, the caution was again displayed, and Larson again was scored in the free-pass position. After getting a second lap back, Larson restarted in the 35th position on lap 49.

The 40-car field enjoyed a long green-flag run, and Larson was able to stay on track longer than most of his competitors, having pitted for fuel several times. Being scored in the 32nd position, Larson drove himself back onto the lead lap on lap 61 after the majority of the leaders had come to pit road for green-flag pit stops. Just before coming onto pit road himself, the field returned to caution on lap 63. Larson pitted for four tires and fuel, restarting in the 26th position on lap 67. Finally being back on the same lap as the majority of the field, Larson quickly went to work, earning six spots on the first lap back under green and entering the top 15 on lap 69. After continuing to hit his marks and run solid lap times, Larson took over the 10th spot on lap 78.

On lap 88, Owens radioed his young driver to report that the No. 32 McDonald's Chevy was the fastest car on the track. As Larson raced in the ninth position, the caution flag was again displayed just before the scheduled last lap of the race, setting the field up for a green/white/checkered finish. With more fuel than the rest of the field, Larson took the green from the eighth position ready to earn a solid finish for his McDonald's team. As the field received the white flag, Larson was scored in the sixth position. Larson continued to battle for a top-five spot on the last lap, but contact from two other cars forced him to lose his position and spin, relegating the Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender to a 14th-place finish.

"Man, I'm not sure what to say about today," commented Larson after the race. "I know this much. My Turner Scott Motorsports team was awesome today. They brought a great car for me, and when we got spun on the first lap, they worked really hard to repair my McDonald's Chevy and get me back on track quickly. All day Trent [Owens, crew chief] made great calls and when we finally got back on the lead lap, we went to the front. I hate that we didn't get the finish that we deserved today, but I guess you never know what you'll get on a road course. Despite everything that happened, I had a lot of fun at Mid-Ohio and it was really cool to qualify fourth. I'm ready to move on to Bristol and see what we can do there after finishing second earlier this year."

TSM PR

Coming off a difficult finish last week at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, where they overcame a lap-one crash to finish 24th, the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) team was hopeful to end this week’s inaugural NASCAR Nationwide Series event at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington with a better result. Unfortunately, what they ended up with was an unexpected last-lap incident that would force them to a final 23rd-place finishing position. The disappointing result also cost the JGR team its points lead in the season’s Owner’s Championship battle, moving them into second place behind Saturday’s race winners, the No. 22 Penske Racing team.

The race weekend started well with a second-row qualifying effort made when Kelly recorded an 84.551 second lap at 96.141 mph, placing the team in the third starting spot for the afternoon Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 event. As officials parked the team back in the garage area, however, it was discovered the No. 54’s right-front tire was going flat. It picked up a large metal piece, about two inches wide, which hindered the tire’s air pressure. NASCAR officials allowed the team to change the tire without penalty and they continued to take the green flag in third.

The event’s green-flag waved at the start of the 2.258-mile road-course event on what was scheduled to be a 90-lap event. Crew Chief Adam Stevens was immediately heard over the radio reporting to his driver, “You are the quickest, an 86.15 second lap.” Kelly was still positioned in third place as the Ohio race track is not one that could easily be passed on, so the team bided their time.

At lap 16, the No. 54 lost one position to the No. 12 of Sam Hornish Jr. and was now scored in fourth place. Kelly reported to the team a few laps later, under the first event caution, “The car isn’t bad. I’m trying not to spin the tires. We were tight earlier but good now. I don’t need any adjustments.” The team pitted on lap 21 for four fresh tires and gas. They returned to the racetrack in sixth place as two competitors did not visit pit road, leaving them at the front of the field to occupy those spots.

The race went back to green on lap 23 with a subsequent yellow again on lap 26, “Save fuel,” Stevens exclaimed. A message that would be heard many times through the race day, signifying fuel-strategy would be important at the end of the race.

Another event caution occurred at lap 29 and the No. 54 team remained on track, while the earlier two competitors who didn’t pit the previous event caution visited pit road, placing the Monster Energy machine back into fourth place on restart at lap 31. A subsequent caution period on lap 38 and Stevens reminded his rookie driver once more, “Save fuel.” Kelly responded, “The car is well balanced still. I’m tight driving into turn one, then loose in the middle of the turn, so I’m having to back up the entry. Where they are really beating me is the last turn. I’m trying to find the best line there. I’m able to keep the tires under me so I think we’ll be good on the long runs.”

Lap 41 saw the green flag wave and Kelly made an aggressive move to pass two cars and move into the second-place spot. Another yellow-flag period on lap 44 waved and the JGR No. 54 team remained on the racetrack to maintain position. After the lap 48 restart, however, the No. 54 moved off track too far in one of the turns and dropped to the fifth position. Under green conditions the team visited pit road for fuel, then leaving the pit area the No. 54 car stalled and Kelly delayed exiting pit road. The Monster Energy team would resume in the 23rd position.

The field was jumbled up at this point, due to some competitors pitting under green and some who remained on track. Another event caution at lap 62 and Stevens reminded his driver, “Save fuel and watch for debris.” Once all the competitors cycled through pit road and the positions stabilized, the No. 54 Monster Energy machine was recorded in the ninth position on lap 66. Kelly turned on the ‘burners’ and improved five positions over the next eight laps to fourth, where he settled in and prepared for the final laps of the race.

On lap 88 another yellow-flag period occurred. Stevens reported once more, “Save all the fuel you can. This thing is going to get ugly.” What Stevens didn’t know was that he foreshadowed his own team’s event finish. Originally set to be a 90-lap race event, would become an extended race when a green-white-checkered flag restart would be implemented after track cleanup. After the field took the green flag for the last time, Kelly immediately pursued the third-place position and achieved the spot with a clean pass on the No. 12 of Hornish Jr. Kelly then took the white flag with the rest of the field before making his last lap around the inaugural road-course event. Unfortunately what would have been a successful top-five finish, was thwarted, when the No. 12 car aggressively hit Kelly’s No. 54 machine in order to regain position, and sent it spinning into the gravel pit halfway through the final race lap.

The Monster Energy machine re-fired and completed the race event, but not before the majority of the field had passed them. The race event concluded at 94 total event laps, 212.252 miles and the No. 54 JGR team accepted a disappointing 23rd-place.

Kelly remarked post-race, “It was great to be competing with those guys at the head of the field. I think we showed we had the pace to be genuinely in the top three. It’s extremely disappointing the race ended the way in which it did, but overall we are happy with the weekend.”

The Monster Energy driver continued, “The pace we had on board the Monster Energy Toyota was strong from the time that we pulled the car off the truck at Mid-Ohio and that continued right through the weekend. To finish qualifying in third despite the slow puncture in our tire was a great outcome. It has been an amazing couple of weeks and I couldn’t be more thankful to the Joe Gibbs Racing operation, Toyota and Monster Energy for their support.”

The car owned by J.D. Gibbs dropped to second place in the Owner’s Point standings, now 22 points behind the No. 22 Roger Penske Ford.

Allmendinger and the No. 22 Ford won the event, his second victory in 10 career Nationwide Series starts. Michael McDowell followed in second while Hornish Jr., Max Papis and Brian Vickers rounded out the top-five finishers. There were seven caution periods for 18 laps of the race along with eight lead changes across seven drivers.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series competes again on August 23 in the Food City 250 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway with television broadcast starting at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN. Kyle Busch will make his 17th start of the year behind the wheel of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Monster Energy Camry.

KBM PR

Max Gresham started fourth in Saturday's Michigan National Guard 200 at the Michigan International Speedway, a personal best in his young NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) career. Gresham piloted the No.8 Sharp-Gallaher Racing Chevrolet to the fourth-fastest lap in qualifying at 39.293 seconds (183.239 mph). His previous best starting position was ninth.  

SGR PR

Jeb Burton put on an impressive show in his first visit to Michigan International Speedway, breaking the track's qualifying record en route to his fourth pole of the season. After dominating the first half of the Michigan National Guard 200 and leading the most laps of the race, Burton's went on to finish 10th, his seventh top-10 finish of 2013.

After honing in on the setup of the No. 4 Arrowhead Silverado in the weekend's two practice session, Burton set a record-breaking 38.760-second lap in qualifying, earning his fourth pole of the season and laying down the fourth-fastest pole-winning speed in the history of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS). Once the green flag waved, Burton demonstrated the dominance of his truck, pulling out to a multi-truck length lead until a caution on lap 17 tightened the pack. Crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. called his 21-year-old driver onto pit road for their first pit stop of the day, making a strategic call for fuel only. Burton returned to the track with the lead, and once the green flag waved on lap 32, he once again pulled away from the trucks behind him.

Burton battled against veteran driver Kyle Busch on the restart, but maintained the point position. The rookie relayed to his crew chief that he may need more rear security center off on a long run, and Hillman Jr. promised that they'd take care of that on their next visit to pit road. Burton's lead waned over the course of the next 10 laps, and he surrendered the top position on 45. Burton radioed that his truck was coming back to him, but he was scored in the fourth position when the third caution flag of the day waved on lap 51. The No. 4 team performed a four-tire stop with fuel and an air-pressure adjustment, and the Arrowhead Chevrolet returned to the track in the sixth spot.

Once the field got back up to speed, Burton explained to his crew that he was still too tight in traffic, and he slipped all the way to the 12th position before the caution flag was displayed on lap 76. With nothing to lose and handling to gain, Hillman Jr. called Burton onto pit road for four tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment to loosen up the No. 4 Chevrolet. With most of the leaders choosing to stay out under yellow, Burton returned to the track in 13th with 11 laps remaining.

Despite the adjustments and fresh tires, Burton expressed that he was still extremely tight. A caution flag bunched up the field for the final time on lap 92, and when the flagger signaled the final restart, Burton battled hard through four-wide racing. The young driver was able to pick up three spots in the closing laps, crossing the start/finish line in the 10th position, his seventh top 10 of the season.

"This definitely wasn't the finish we came for," said Burton. "We had a really fast truck that was very capable of winning the race, but some things just fell off at the end. I had a pit stop where I probably could have gotten off pit road a little faster, and combined with how tight we got at the end, we just couldn't get there. A top 10 is still good for us in the points and I'm proud of my guys for how hard they worked all weekend. Winning the pole with a speed four-tenths faster than second was extremely cool, and I have to thank a great team for giving me a truck that fast. I don't have a lot of time to dwell since Bristol is right around the corner, so hopefully we'll be able to redeem ourselves with a win there."

TSM PR

Miguel Paludo was one of the best in the field as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) battled it out at Michigan International Speedway. Paludo earned a top-10 starting position for the Michigan National Guard 200 and led 20 laps on his way to a fifth-place finish, his second-consecutive top five and eighth top 10 of the season.

Feeling confident about the weekend from the moment he arrived at the 2.0-mile Michigan track, Paludo secured a top-10 starting position with a 39.473-second qualifying lap in the morning time trials. Taking the green flag from eighth place, Paludo maintained his starting spot until a caution on lap 17 gave him the opportunity to make his first pit stop of the day. Crew chief Jeff Hensley called for four tires, fuel and a track-bar adjustment. With many trucks opting for two-tire or fuel-only stops, Paludo was in the 17th position when he returned to the track. Hensley assured his driver that while others had opted for track position early on, the team would be prepared to save time when it counted on a future stop.

The field returned to green on lap 20, and Paludo moved up two spots before a yellow once again slowed the racing action on lap 27. Now in a position to make a fuel-only stop, a splash of fuel put the AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet in 11th for the restart. Paludo felt the handling of his truck coming to him over the longest green-flag run of the day, and he advanced into eighth by the time green-flag pit stops began on lap 50. Although capable of going much further than his competitors before requiring a stop, a caution flag for debris on lap 57 somewhat eliminated that advantage as most teams prepared for what could be their final stop of the day. Hensley made the call for right-side sticker tires and fuel, as the handling on the No. 32 did not require any further adjustments. The aggressive strategy and fast work by the Turner Scott Motorsports pit crew gave Paludo the edge, and the AccuDoc Solutions Chevy Silverado took over the lead for the lap 61 restart.

Paludo got a good jump on the field when the green flag waved, and after a brief battle with the second-place truck, he began to slowly pull away from the competitors behind him. He appeared to be on his way to victory, but a caution for a wreck five laps later once again closed up the field. With Hensley urging his driver to save fuel, Paludo did not require a visit to pit road, so he remained on the racetrack and maintained the point position.

The green flag waved on lap 79, and while Paludo's truck was strong, the No. 51 truck had a slight edge on the No. 32 when the final caution flag of the day waved on lap 92. With only six laps remaining until the scheduled finish, the restart was wild, sending Paludo and his competitors four wide after the green. Paludo battled to the finish, but a shuffle in the closing laps put him in the fifth position when he crossed the start/finish line.

"It is so much fun to run up front," said Paludo after the race. "I can't thank my team enough, we work so hard and just keep getting better and better every week. I thought that this was our race; I knew going into it that it would be a good race for us. We just have to keep this momentum going straight into Bristol and keep making gains in the point standings. That first win is so close."

Paludo's fifth-place finish moved him up to fifth in the NCWTS Driver Point Standings. The NCWTS returns to action under the lights at Bristol Motor Speedway on Wednesday, August 21. The UNOH 200 will air on Fox Sports 1 at 8:00 p.m. EDT.

TSM PR

Chicagoland Speedway, Hillshire Brands, AARP and AARP Foundationare teaming up this September in the fight to end hunger for nearly nine million older Americans. The organizations will host a volunteer meal-packing event on Wed., Sept. 11 at Chicago’s Navy Pier in an effort to provide meals to older Illinoisans struggling with hunger.

The midday event will take place from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on the west end of the Pier and the meals will benefit Northern Illinois Food Bank, which serves 13 counties in the greater Chicagoland area. Over the course of four hours, volunteers are expected to pack over 1,700 boxes of food, yielding more than 15,000 meals.

“We are extremely grateful to AARP and AARP Foundation, Chicagoland Speedway and Hillshire Brands for putting a focus on hunger in our community,” said Pete Schaefer, president and CEO, Northern Illinois Food Bank. “Drive to End Hunger reminds us that there are many older adults who are finding themselves making choices they never thought they would have to make, such as, paying for their mortgage or buying medicine, paying utility bills or buying food.”

In further support of Drive to End Hunger, Hillshire Brands is donating $20,000 to AARP Foundation and an entire semi-truck load of food to the Northern Illinois Food Bank.

“Hillshire Brands is proud to support AARP Foundation and the Northern Illinois Food Bank,” said Sean Connolly, president and CEO, Hillshire Brands. “Through campaigns such as this by AARP Foundation, and the feeding programs of Northern Illinois Food Bank and its network partners, we can help ensure that nutritious food is available to older adults, and all our hungry neighbors, in their time of need.”

“Being a part of this effort with Chicagoland Speedway, Hillshire Brands and the Northern Illinois Food Bank means that more older adults who struggle with hunger will get access to the food they need,” said AARP Foundation President Jo Ann Jenkins. “This event will help shine a spotlight on the issue of hunger that more than nine million people 50-plus face everyday.”

Throughout the 2013 season, all 13 ISC tracks, including Chicagoland Speedway and Route 66 Raceway, are donating extra food from race weekends to local food banks on behalf of Drive to End Hunger. ISC began working with AARP and AARP Foundation on food donation efforts in 2011.  Since then, the collaboration has donated more than 70,000 pounds of food – the equivalent of approximately 54,000 meals – to local food banks near ISC tracks.

“While we have been involved with Drive to End Hunger through our parent company, ISC, we are thrilled to personally host AARP and AARP Foundation in Chicago this September,” said Scott Paddock, Chicagoland Speedway president. “We look forward to continuing the fight against hunger and are pleased to provide aid to a cause with such a tremendous impact on both a local and national level.”

CLS PR

Ten-time Emmy Award winner Larry Michael, who is familiar with play-by-play at NFL stadiums, will make a different – but very important – call on Friday, September 6, at Richmond International Raceway. The “Voice of the Washington Redskins” will serve as Grand Marshal for the Virginia529 College Savings 250 NASCAR Nationwide Series race, voicing the most famous words in motorsports: “Gentlemen, start your engines!”

The Virginia529 College Savings 250 kicks off the “One Last Race to Make The Chase” weekend at Richmond International Raceway, and features a night of old-school, short track action “under the lights” on Friday, September 6. Some of your favorite NASCAR Nationwide Series drivers, including Virginia native Elliott Sadler, will mix it up with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers running double-duty on the ¾-mile oval.

“I’m a big, big NASCAR fan,” said Michael. “To be asked to be the Grand Marshal is something special for me and I’m really looking forward to it. The Virginia529 is a program that I’ve participated in with my children, in fact. I’ve had one who has gotten through college at George Mason University and I have two more in college now. It’s the largest such college plan in the entire country. If you have kids that are headed to college, what better way to get your money ready for college, than to put in the Virginia529?”

“We’re very pleased to have Larry Michael serve as the Grand Marshal of the Virginia529 College Savings 250,” said Mary Morris, CEO of the Virginia529 College Savings Plan.  “Larry has long been an advocate for education, with multiple Virginia529 college savings accounts to help him and his children reach their higher education goals.”

Michael, the Senior Vice President/Executive Producer of Media for the Washington Redskins, also hosts Redskins Nation on Comcast SportsNet, as well as the Mike Shanahan Coaches Show on NBC-4. His responsibilities include production of all video content for Redskins.com TV, as well as production of all Redskins Broadcast Network television shows and broadcasts.

RIR PR