Landon Cassill matched his best finish of the Nationwide Series season Saturday by taking 17^th in the Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen International.

Cassill, driving the JD Motorsports with Gary Keller Chevrolet, started 24^th and ran a steady race all the way to roll home 17^th. He also finished 17^th at Talladega Superspeedway in May.

 “We had a good car,” Cassill said. “There was a lot of traffic to deal with and you had to be careful, particularly in the turns. Some of it was about survival and keeping the fenders on the car until the end.”

Fourteen cars failed to finish the race with a variety of problems, including three engine failures.

Sprint Cup invader Brad Keselowski won the race. He has won his past four starts in the Nationwide Series.

JD Motorsports PR

Mike Wallace’s Watkins Glen International race was practically over before it began.

Wallace was collected in a wicked first-lap crash Saturday in the Zippo 200 at The Glen, and the JD Motorsports with Gary Keller Chevrolet was so badly damaged that he could not continue in the race. He finished 40^th and was the only driver to park because of involvement in a race accident.

Wallace said it marked the first time in his career he had crashed out of a race in the first turn of the first lap.

Kyle Busch, one of the race favorites, lost control of his car in a pack of traffic in turn one a few seconds after the start of the race. He bounced off the wall and into the path of Wallace, who had turned to the right to avoid contact with a slower car as traffic bunched up in the turn.

 “I tried to miss one wreck and got in another one,” Wallace said. “There was just nothing else to do and nowhere to go. It’s tough, but it’s one of those things that happens. We couldn’t get it fixed and back out.”

Wallace slammed into Busch with the right front of his car, causing extensive damage to the 01 Chevrolet. Busch’s car also had significant damage, but he returned to the track and finished 24^th, five laps down.

JD Motorsports PR

In celebration of the No. 22 Hertz Ford Mustang's win at Watkins Glen International, driven by defending Sprint Cup Champion Brad Keselowski, Hertz (NYSE:HTZ) is offering NASCAR Race Fans $22 off their next weekly rental with Hertz.  This is Keselowski's first win in the Hertz Ford Mustang and his 18^thNationwide Series win driving the No. 22 for Penske Racing.

"Brad has shown his passion and skill for driving at Watkins Glen in the past," commented Mark P. Frissora, Hertz Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.  "At Hertz we value such commitment and strive to deliver it to each and every customer, just like Brad did this weekend. Hertz is pleased to offer race fans a special discount in honor of the team's win."

Brad Keselowski took the lead for the final time with 41 laps to go. Over the final run, Keselowski was able to pull away from the field, earning his fourth Nationwide Series win of the season. It was Keselowski's 24^th-career Nationwide Series victory.

"I'm thrilled to continue the success of the No. 22 Hertz Ford Mustang by winning the Zippo 200," commented Penske Racing driver Brad Keselowski. "Our winning wouldn't have been possible without the work and dedication of the entire team. It was wonderful that, together, we were all able to keep the No. 22 Hertz Ford Mustang traveling at the speed of Hertz for the third time this year." On Saturday afternoon, Keselowski led 46 of the 82 laps helping him win for the first time in the Hertz Ford Mustang and has helped move the No. 22 to within five points of first place in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Owner's Standings.

To receive the Penske Racing Win discount, customers must mention Promotion Code (PC#):  183234 to receive $22 off their next weekly Hertz rental.  The Win discount can be combined with the special Hertz Racing Discount Program (mention corporate discount number -- CDP#:  2222222 at time of reservation) for extra savings.  The Racing discounts are subject to all applicable terms and conditions and blackout dates may apply.

Hertz is committed to offering its customers the most technologically innovative products and services available to keep customers "Traveling at the Speed of Hertz." This includes Hertz 'Carfirmations'; 'Gold Choice', which gives Gold members the power to keep the car they reserved or simply choose a different car from the Gold Choice area; and e-Return, with the fastest car rental drop-off that includes an email receipt within hours. These are all complimentary services for Hertz Gold Plus Rewards members, which is currently free to join. In addition, Hertz continues to expand the presence of its ExpressRent Interactive Kiosks that let customers rent a car, with or without a reservation, through a live, face-to-face video kiosk.

Hertz PR

Roush Fenway Racing’s Travis Pastrana battled back from damage sustained during an on track incident to earn his seventh top-15 finish of the season Saturday in the Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen International, crossing the finish line in 15^th.

“I didn’t really do that well in practice and qualifying, but I thought we had a really, really good car,” said Pastrana.  “I was just kind of smooth and steady in the beginning and moved up to 10^th at one point.  I got my lap times down where I wanted to be, but we bumped into a few people under braking, so it wasn’t the result that we had hoped for.  I felt like we learned a lot though, and we were a top-10 car at the end, for me, that’s still the primary goal.”

The NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) visited a road course for the second time this season, stopping at the 2.45-mile Watkins Glen International.  Rain on Friday shortened the only practice session of the day for the NNS, but the weather cleared up for qualifying and the race on Saturday.

The No. 60 Ford Mustang started 20^th for the 82 lap, 200.9-mile race.  Pastrana held onto 18^th for the opening 18 laps of the race, before visiting pit road under caution.  Crew Chief Chad Norris radioed for four tires, fuel and no adjustments to the slightly tight-handling Ford Mustang.

Pastrana restarted 16^th and began his march toward the top-10.  The No. 60 Ford Mustang lined up 10^th for a restart on Lap 29, and remained in the top-12 for the next green flag stint.  Flat spotted tires brought the No. 60 Mustang back down pit road for the second time of the day under caution on Lap 43.  The team took four tires, fuel and made a wedge adjustment.

When a car spun on the track, the No. 60 Ford Mustang received damage to the nose of the car as Pastrana navigated his way through the smoke.  Shortly after, Pastrana made his way down pit road on Lap 51 for four tires and fuel.

A caution on Lap 57 brought Pastrana back down pit road to repair the damage to the nose of the car.  He restarted in 26^th on Lap 61.  Pastrana spent the closing 20 laps of the race working his way back through the field, ultimately crossing the finish line in 15^th.

RFR PR

The Monster Energy team came into Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International Saturday hopeful to earn veteran driver Kyle Busch his first trip to victory lane at the 2.45-mile road course in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. What they ended up with was an unexpected lap-one accident and a day of adversity that placed them with a 24th-finishing position.

The day started well with a front-row qualifying effort made when Busch recorded a 71.837 second lap at 122.778 mph placing the team in the second starting spot for the afternoon Zippo 200 event. Upon green-flag start, on lap one, in turn one, Busch made what he called a ‘crossover-move’ and the car slipped out from under him, causing the No. 54 Monster Energy Camry to spin. Before the oncoming field could slow down quick enough, Busch took a hard hit from the No. 01 car, which caused the majority of damage to the front of the black machine. The Joe Gibbs Racing team was forced to immediately visit the garage area for repairs.

While the crew feverishly worked to fix what they could on the front and rear of their injured Camry, the field executed a yellow-caution period from Busch’s wreck, which bought the No. 54 team some time. They completed as much work as possible, replacing the front suspension, fixing damage to the left rear and removing the car hood, to return their talented driver back to the track, but not before going seven laps down to the field.

Just after the Monster Energy team returned to the race, a full-course yellow appeared on lap 17. Busch reported to the crew, “If I had a little bit better aero, I’d be better. I just fried the nose.” You could hear the disappointment at what had transpired on lap one. Team crew chief Adam Stevens replied, “There is a lot more racing to do still this season, more races to win.”  The team did not visit pit road under this caution period and restarted the race at lap 20 in the 32nd spot, six laps down.

At this point Busch remained focused on catching other lap-down cars, and worked his way to 31st. Then at lap 25 he visited pit road for the next field caution, to replace tires and take on fuel. The crew double-checked damaged areas. What was normally a cool matte black body with bright green Monster Energy colors looked quite different this race -- the engine now exposed, the front sheet metal removed and black bondo tape in several areas of repair. Although the Camry machine didn’t look pretty, the team was pleasantly surprised at how fast Busch was still able to drive her. The Toyota was showing lap times competitive with the top-25 contenders, only two seconds off the fastest laps recorded in the field. This was fast enough that NASCAR would allow the No. 54 to continue the race.

At lap 30 of the 82-circuit event, Busch restarted 30th, then worked his way to 29th by lap 42 when another event caution waved. The team would visit pit road again for tires and gas, still scored six-laps down to the field which restarted on lap 46. At lap 48 Busch had secured another position to 28th, then to 27th at lap 55. Because Busch’s car still carried good speed, he was able to maneuver through the field without too much trouble.

The team caught a break at lap 57, under the fifth full-course caution, when Busch now the first car not on the lead lap, earned the “lucky dog” pass. This NASCAR rule allows a competitor to pit after the lead-lap cars and then earn one lap back in their position, which improved Busch’s standing to five laps down, now in 27th. With 21 laps remaining in the final portion of the race, Busch worked his way through traffic, while other competitors experienced issues that forced them out of the race, allowing the No. 54 machine to complete the course in the 24th spot.

While it was a discouraging race start and finish, the No. 54 Monster Energy team showed their championship-searching form by fixing their damaged Camry and returning Busch to the racetrack quickly so that he could finish the race. The car owned by J.D. Gibbs maintains first place in the Owner’s Point standings, now leading the No. 22 Roger Penske Ford by 5 points.

Keselowski and the No. 22 Ford won the event, followed by Sam Hornish Jr., Brian Vickers, Regan Smith and Elliott Sadler. There were five caution periods for 15 laps of the race along with seven lead changes across six drivers.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series competes again on August 17 in the Inaugural Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Mansfield, with television broadcast starting at 2p.m. ET on ESPN. Owen Kelly will make his 2nd start of the year behind the wheel of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Monster Energy Camry.

KBM PR

Parker Kligerman and the Bandit Chippers Racing had another strong showing on a road course, bringing home a sixth-place finish in the Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International. The 23-year-old driver was able to put his No. 77 Camry up front for seven laps, but got shuffled back after an untimely caution flew after he made his second of three pit stops on the day. The Connecticut native took the final restart of the race from the ninth spot, but over the final 21 laps was able to pick up two spots and ended the day with his eighth top-10 finish of 2013.

"We had a fast Bandit Chippers Toyota Camry --  everyone on this Kyle Busch Motorsports team -- Eric Phillips (crew chief) and this whole crew did a really good job all weekend and just real solid weekend," said Kligerman, who has an average finish of 4.5 on the two road-course races this season. "It's my first time here and I don't have a ton of experience in these cars on road courses, but we've just proven to be really fast and right up to par with everyone here, including the Cup guys -- I felt that was impressive, especially here which I consider kind of the only place they'd have an advantage since they've raced here a million times.  I thought we had a top-five car -- just the cautions didn't play our way and track position was so important that we just couldn't quite get to the top-five and stay there.  We led some laps and overall a pretty successful day points way."

Kligerman was eighth quickest in Friday's lone practice session and followed that up by earning the ninth starting spot in Saturday morning's group-qualifying session. After the green flag dropped for the race, the No. 77 Bandit Chippers Camry fell back to 10^th, where it would remain until the second caution of the race occurred on lap 18. The talented youngster reported that his Camry was "loose on the right-handers and tight on the left-handers."

When pit road opened, the top nine pitted but playing the race backwards, as is common in road-course racing, Phillips elected to keep his Toyota on the track. Kligerman assumed the race lead under caution on lap 18 and led the field to the stripe when the race went back green on lap 20. The Bandit Chippers would remain out front until ordered down pit road for a regularly-scheduled stop on lap 25.

The over-the-wall crew administered a four-tire and fuel stop and the No. 77 Toyota returned to the track scored in the 29^th position. Phillips had hoped the race would remain green and Kligerman would be able to run several laps with an open track, but one lap later the No. 52 car stalled bringing out the third caution of the race.

After cars that hadn't made their first stop came down pit road, Kligerman took the lap-29 restart from the 14^th spot. By the time the fourth caution of the race slowed the field on lap 43, he had maneuvered his way up to the seventh spot. Phillips elected to keep his young driver on the track and the Bandit Chippers Camry restarted from the fourth spot when the field went back green on lap 46.

On lap 53, the Connecticut native came down pit road under green-flag conditions for his final stop of the day. With varying strategies in play, the No. 77 Camry returned to the track in the 16^th spot. Three laps later the final caution of the day occurred for debris in the esses and several teams elected to come down pit road.

The Bandit Chippers Camry took the lap-61 restart from the ninth position with 20 laps remaining. With 10 laps remaining he was in the eighth spot. Kligerman remained in the eighth spot with five laps remaining, but was able to make his way around Justin Allgaier and Joey Logano in the closing laps to end the day with a sixth-place finish.

Brad Keselowski picked up his fourth win of 2013 and the 24^th of his Nationwide Series career. Keselowski's teammate, Sam Hornish Jr., finished 1.418 seconds behind him in the runner-up spot. Brian Vickers finished third, Regan Smith fourth and Elliott Sadler rounded out the top-five finishers.

There were five caution periods totaling 15 laps. Six drivers led a lap, exchanging the lead seven times. 14 drivers failed to finish the 21^st event of 2013.

Kligerman remains 10^th in the Nationwide Series championship standings with 21 of 33 races complete, 74 points behind series points leader Austin Dillon. The Kyle Busch owned No. 77 entry ranks 12^th in the owner's championship standings, 168 points behind the series-leading No. 54 team.

Kligerman and his No. 77 Bandit Chippers Racing team head to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Mansfield Aug. 17 for the Inaugural Nationwide Children's Hospital 200. Live television coverage of Saturday's 90-lap event begins with NASCAR Countdown at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN.

KBM PR

Race Highlights:

• Richard Childress Racing teammates finished 11^th (Brian Scott), 12^th (Austin Dillon) and 14^th (Brendan Gaughan).
• Dillon leads the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings by three points over Sam Hornish Jr, while Scott is seventh in the standings, 56 points behind the leader.
• The No. 3 Chevrolet team ranks third in the Nationwide Series owner championship point standings, with the No. 2 team ninth in the standings and the No. 33 team 13th.
• According to NASCAR's Post Race Loop Data Statistics, Scott ranked ninth in Average Running Position with an Average Running Place of 9.902.
• Dillon ranked fifth in Green Flag Passes with 39.
• Gaughan ranked 10^th in Quality Passes with 15.
• Brad Keselowski earned his fourth victory of the 2013 Nationwide Series season and was followed to the finish line by Hornish, Vickers, Smith and Sadler.
• The next Nationwide Series race is the Nationwide Children's Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Saturday, August 17. The 22nd race of the 2013 season is scheduled to be televised live on ESPN beginning at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on the Motor Network and Sirius XM NASCAR Satellite Radio Channel 90.

Brian Scott Earns 11^th-Place Finish at Watkins Glen International

Brian Scott and Richard Childress Racing's No. 2 Shore Lodge Chevrolet team earned an 11^th-place result in the 82-lap NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Watkins Glen International on Saturday afternoon, after starting from the seventh position. Once the initial green flag waved at the seven-turn road course, Scott maintained a top-10 position through the first half of the race pitting for fuel, four tires and air pressure adjustments under caution on laps 18 and 43. The Idaho native was scored 13^th for the lap 46 restart and was called down pit road by crew chief Phil Gould on lap 50 to top off with fuel under green. Able to go the distance on fuel, Scott stayed on track during a lap 58 caution period, picked up five positions and restarted seventh with 21 laps remaining. During the final circuits, the RCR driver kept the car on course and crossed the finish line in the 11^th place. The finish moved him up one position, to seventh, in the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings. 

Start - 7         Finish - 11         Laps Led - 0         Points - 7

BRIAN SCOTT QUOTE:

"The team did a really good job on pit road with the stops and strategy calls. I was happy with the car and we only had to make minor air pressure and track bar adjustments during the race. I felt like I gave it my all, really got into the turns aggressively and hit my marks. We were better than when were at Road America, so that means we should be even better next week when we go to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course."

Brendan Gaughan Finishes 14^th at Watkins Glen International

Brendan Gaughan and the No. 33 South Point Hotel & Casino team collected a 14th-place finish at Watkins Glen International after battling a loose-handling condition during the early laps of the 82-lap NASCAR Nationwide Series event Saturday afternoon. The Las Vegas native rolled off 16th for the 200-mile race, and quickly alerted crew chief Ernie Cope that his black and gold Chevrolet was loose in the esses of the seven-turn road course. Cope instructed his driver to pit road on laps 18 and 43 for scheduled four-tire pit stops and adjustments to correct the car's handling issues. As the race progressed, Gaughan hovered around the top 20 in the running order and settled into the top 15 during the final laps. The Richard Childress Racing driver ultimately crossed the finish line 14^th.

Start - 16         Finish - 14         Laps Led - 0         Points - N/A

BRENDAN GAUGHAN QUOTE:

"I had a hard time getting a feel for the car today, it didn't come to me like I thought it would. We were loose in the esses during the early laps, and the adjustments didn't tighten me up like I needed them to. I tried running different lines, which helped. We gained ground in the end, but we just didn't have enough to get the finish we wanted."

RCR PR

Having faced a myriad of issues at Watkins Glen Int’l last season, Eric McClure headed north to try his luck once again at the 11-turn road course.  Posting a track-best starting position of 30^th, it looked as though the 34-year-old driver was going to secure a track-best finish when a tie rod broke on the No. 14 Hefty®/Reynolds® Camry with 21 laps remaining in the event.  After quick work by the team, McClure was able to return to the track to finish the Zippo 200 in the 28^th position.  With this finish, the team was able to maintain the 24^thposition in the NASCAR Owner Standings. 

Taking the green from the 30^th position, McClure quickly maneuvered his way around two-spinning cars in turn one and around two additional cars on the track before the full-course yellow flag was shown.  When the race resumed on lap four, McClure was scored in the 26^th position, where he remained until the yellow flag was displayed again on lap 16.  Although the Virginia driver was battling a car that was loose on the right-handed turns and tight on the left-handed turns, crew chief Todd Myers called for a fuel only pit stop which allowed the orange and blue Camry to be scored in the 24^th position when the race resumed on lap 20.

Five laps later, another yellow flag waved.  Myers used this opportunity to bring his driver down pit road for service and to try to repair the “spongy brake” issues McClure was having.  The team changed four tires, added fuel, made an air-pressure adjustment, and removed tape from the brake ducts to help keep them cool.  After the service, the team was able to maintain the 24^th position in the running order when the race resumed.

Despite slipping to the 26^th position on the restart, McClure worked his way back up to the 25^th position when the yellow flag was again displayed on lap 41.  Reporting that the car was the best it had been, despite having to battle “spongy” brakes, Myers called McClure to pit road for four tires, fuel, and to again remove tape from the brake ducts.  After quick work by the team, McClure was scored in the 22^nd position on the lap 46 restart.

As the race continued, McClure began battling a car that was loose on every turn.  Since no adjustments were made on the previous pit stop, it was determined that the removal of tape from the brake ducts hurt the car’s down-force. When the caution flag waved on lap 58, McClure returned to pit road for a four tire and fuel service.  The team also added tape to the brake ducts in hopes of fixing the loose-handling condition.  After restarting in the 25^th spot, McClure quickly informed the team that something was amiss with the car’s handling.  Teammate Mike Bliss, who was several laps down to the race leader from an earlier issue and was running behind McClure at the time, informed the team that a tie rod had broken on the No. 14 Camry.  In an effort to not cause damage to the car, McClure limped around the track and headed to the garage area for repairs on lap 61.  Although the team was able to replace the tie rod, the hopeful expectations were diminished with a 28^th-place finish.

Driver, Eric McClure Quotes:

“It was a disappointing finish for sure.  It seems that if a freak deal happens, it happens to us.  That said, we had a solid day prior to that; it was the best I have been at Watkins Glen.  We will hang our hat on that and keep racing hard.”

TMI PR

17-year-old Erik Jones took advantage of several long green flag runs Saturdaynight and led more than 150 laps to win the Primera Plastics 200 at Berlin Raceway.

Jones won his first ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards race and became the third different driver to go to Victory Lane in the No. 15 Venturini Motorsports Toyota this season.

"What a relief," Jones said after winning the race. "During those last 50 laps, I was hearing all kinds of noises in the car. I was just hoping it would stay together and nothing would break. It's just amazing to come here and win."

Jones finished ahead of Mason Mingus, in the No. 32 811 Call Before You Dig Toyota, and the 44 of Frank Kimmel in the Ansell-Menards Toyota. Cunningham Motorsports driver Austin Wayne Self and polesitter Mason Mitchell in the Happy Cheeks Ford rounded out the top five.

Jones finished second in June at Pocono Raceway, then last week was leading with two laps to go before hitting the wall and then subsequent engine trouble left him with a 12th place finish. He said winning at Berlin Raceway - his home track - is somewhat of redemption.

"I've made a few mistakes that have cost us a win, so this one is nice," Jones said. "I've probably raced this track about 10 times in a late model. I've had good late models and bad late models, but I've never won here. Last year, in the ARCA race, I finished third. Winning here is really nice."

The race was finished in 1 hour and 14 minutes and had four cautions for 21 laps.

Mitchell, driving for Empire Racing, set a track record in winning the Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell award. He had a nice run early, leading the first 42 laps.

Self continued his impressive ARCA Racing Series season with another top five finish. In four races this season for Cunningham, Self has finished sixth, second, tenth and now fourth.

"This team really works hard," Self said. "We had a good car. Every time I get in the Cunningham Motorsports Dodge I know I am going to have a good car. I just try and be patient and not make mistakes out there."

Mingus, the SCOTT Rookie Challenge point leader, finished second for the third time this season. Last year at Berlin, his car broke before turning a lap.

"Last year was tough break," he said. "We all really wanted to run well. When we unloaded, the car was not very good. If someone would have told me we would finish second when we first started in practice, I would probably have laughed at them. The team made some adjustments and changes and really worked hard on the car."

Kimmel didn't get his 80th all-time series victory but did continue his top 10 streak. He's now finished in the top 10 in 24 consecutive ARCA races, including all 14 this season.

Venturini Motorsports drivers Justin Boston in the ZLOOP Computer & Electronics Recycling Toyota and Clint King in the No. 55 Speedrack-Nashville Wire Toyota finished sixth and seventh. Tom Hessert rebounded from early troubles in his Barbera's Autoland Dodge was eighth, Josh Williams in the Roulo Brothers Racing Ford ninth and Kelly Kovski in the Hooser Tire-Midwest Allgaier Motorsports Dodge 10th.

Michael Lira, driving for Bill Kimmel Racing, making his ARCA debut, was 11th, two laps down.

Jones credited his crew chief, Kevin Reed, for making the call for two tires on the team's first stop and four fresh tires on the second, which came with 52 laps remaining when Jones was the first of the lead laps cars off pit road, further cementing his chances at a victory. The race remained green the rest of the way.

"Kevin made a great call," Jones said. "The team did such a great job for me tonight."

ARCA Racing PR