After overcoming a pit-road speeding penalty at the end of stage two, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. persevered gaining 12 positions in the final stage to take the checkered flag in the 16th position in Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race at Pocono Raceway.
“This is probably one of the best cars I’ve had at Pocono,” Stenhouse said. “We should’ve had a better finish today but the pit-road speeding penalty cost us. Overall we had a good weekend and will keep learning in these final races before the Playoffs.”
After starting in the 21st position, the Olive Branch, Miss. native took over the lead on lap 25 where he led 11 laps as differences of pit strategy played out in stage one. Once the pit stops cycled through, Stenhouse took the green checkered to end the stage in the 17th position.
With a flurry of cautions in stage two, differences in pit strategy came into play. In the closing laps of stage two, the leaders hit pit road allowing Stenhouse to score a seventh-place finish and gaining valuable playoff points.
When leaving pit-road after his stop during the stages, Stenhouse got a pit-road speeding penalty forcing him to start at the tail end of the field for the final stage. After restarting in the 28th position, Stenhouse was able to pick up 12 positions in the finale to take the checkered flag in the 16th position.
Next up for Stenhouse Jr. and the No. 17 team is the I LOVE NEW YORK 355 at Watkins Glen International on August 6. Race coverage begins at 3 p.m. on NBCSN. Coverage can also be heard on MRN and SIRIUS radio channel 90.
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