Bayne Finishes 13th at Talladega

Trevor Bayne fought back from an ill-handling car early on charging his way towards the front crossing the line 13th at Talladega Superspeedway Sunday afternoon in his AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford Fusion.

“Little disappointed in the speed we had in the car today, especially early on we weren’t able to stay with that lead pack,” Bayne said. “The Stewart-Haas cars were just so fast and able to check out, but all the Fords were decent. We just struggled to have what we needed to be able to lead a lane and get where we needed to be, so I had to push and follow people. I wasn’t able to make the big moves and get to the top-10 like I wanted to, so just had to have a steady race and gradually work our way up there. At the end we were in a decent spot coming to the lap when the 88 wrecked, then the caution came out. On the front stretch I thought we were wrecked and we came out going straight so we’ll take it.”

The 2011 Daytona 500 winner rolled off the grid 24th for the 188-lap event. In the opening laps, Bayne complained of loose-handling conditions, something much of the field reported in the first stage. After a yellow at lap 10 in which he would pit, Bayne eventually crossed the line 27th to end the segment.

Following more adjustments and service to the No. 6 under the stage break, Bayne would line up 20th for the second stage. Just a couple laps later, the yellow came out in which he again pitted, but on exit made contact with the No. 72, who was pitting on the wrong lap. The team would repair the small damage to the right front, as he lined back up 33rd for the restart at lap 65.

Upon the restart, Bayne was able to pass a plethora of cars, getting up to 11th by lap 82. Following another yellow just prior to the stage end, Bayne crossed the line 21st at lap 110. The team pitted for fuel only at the stage break, setting up to restart 10th at lap 115. After another yellow, Bayne restarted 15th with 47 to go. His final pit stop of the day came at lap 160, where he’d line up 18th after the yellow. The field once again went under yellow with two to go, where Bayne avoided a multi-car accident, before going on to finish 13th.

The No. 6 returns to the track next weekend with Bayne back behind the wheel at Kansas Speedway. Race coverage begins next Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on NBC and MRN.

RFR PR