Kaulig Racing Post-Race Report | Martinsville Speedway

Xfinity 500

Justin Haley, No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1

• Justin Haley qualified 24th for the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
• Although Haley was happy with the handling of the No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1 in practice and qualifying, the car fired off extremely free at the start of the Xfinity 500. Haley dropped back to 32nd, falling one lap down, where he remained until the first caution came out on lap 104. He took the wave around to get put back on the lead lap, restarting 28th with 19 to go in the first stage. Haley maintained position and went on to finish the opening stage in 28th.
• Haley pitted during the stage break for tires, fuel and a major adjustment to help the handling of the No. 31 Chevy. He started the second stage in 30th. Haley worked his way to 29th before the caution came out on lap 217. He took the wave around once again and restarted 28th on lap 226. He went on to finish the second stage in 29th.
• Haley pitted under the stage break for tires and fuel before starting the final stage in 32nd. The first caution of the stage came quickly on lap 273. Haley slid his tires avoiding a wreck and elected to pit for fresh tires under caution. He restarted 31st on lap 285. The next caution came out on lap 305. Haley stayed out and the field went back to green on lap 311. The next caution came out on lap 325. Haley radioed he had no right front grip before pitting for four tires under yellow. He restarted 29th on lap 332 and went on to finish the race in 30th.

“We started the weekend super optimistic. I was happy with how our No. 31 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Camaro ZL1 felt in practice in qualifying. Unfortunately we fired off really free in the race and just quite figure out what we needed throughout the race. Hopefully we can finish out strong as a team in Phoenix“

– Justin Haley

Dead On Tools 250

Daniel Hemric, No. 10 Campers Inn RV Chevrolet Camaro

• Daniel Hemric qualified 14^thfor the Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway.
• Hemric had gained one spot on the initial start, before the caution came out on lap six. After restarting 13th, Hemric made it into the top 10 and reported that he was laterally loose this run before the caution came out again on lap 42. The team decided to pit under caution for four tires and fuel. After restarting 10th with 11 to go in the stage, Hemric went on to finish the opening stage 12th.
• After staying out at the stage break, Hemric restarted sixth on the inside lane before the next caution came out on lap 74. He restarted in seventh with 41 to go in stage two. Hemric was running seventh when the caution came out again lap 89. The restart came with 26 to go in stage two where Hemric restarted in seventh on the outside lane. He was unable to keep his momentum going and went on to finish the second stage in 13th.
• During the stage break, Hemric pitted for a wedge and air pressure adjustment. He restarted 19th with 121 laps to go in the final stage. Hemric was running 17th when the caution came out with 97 to go. The team elected to stay on track under the caution laps. The restart came with 90 to go in the final stage where Hemric restarted 14th on the outside. When the caution came out on lap 163, Hemric came down pit road for his final set of stickers, fuel and a big swing on an air pressure adjustment. Hemric restarted in 30th after pitting under caution. Hemric had gained nine positions before the caution flag flew again on lap 177. After other cars elected to pit under that caution, Hemric was able to restart in 10th with 68 to go before chaos struck again on lap 187. The team elected to stay out before the restart with 54 to go. Hemric was running between 10th-14th when the caution came out with just 14 to go. He restarted 14th on the outside lane with eight laps to go before chaos happened on lap 245, bringing out the red flag. When the red flag was lifted and the yellow flag was displayed, Hemric elected to stay out and was able to restart 12th in the overtime attempt at a GWC.​​ The last lap crash claimed numerous cars but Hemric made it through and prevailed with a sixth-place finish.

“What a finish in our Campers Inn RV Chevrolet! I felt like we stayed between ninth and 14th all day. This place is not a lot of fun when you can’t move forward; you’re always playing defense. It was a battle all day, but once the laps winded down, the race craft just went out the window. I figured it would be chaos there at the end, and it was. Somehow we got a sixth place finish out of it.”

– Daniel Hemric

Layne Riggs, No. 11 Infinity Communications Group Chevrolet Camaro

• Layne Riggs qualified 19th for the Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway.
• Out of the gate, Riggs was reminded by his spotter, Frank Deiny, to not overdrive the corners. Doing so, he gained two positions while battling in the outside lane. An early caution fell on lap five, and Riggs radioed to his crew chief, Jason Trinchere, that the No. 11 was snug in the center and stressed that it was very challenging to pass. Moving up a row after the choose cone, Riggs restarted 15th. As tire pressures continued to build on the Infinity Communications Chevrolet, Riggs reported that the car was snappy loose. As the caution fell on lap 41, Riggs was called to pit road from the 17th position. Amid pit road confusion, Riggs pitted for tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. Upon returning to the track, he was notified that he drove through too many pit boxes on his initial approach and had to restart from the tail end of the longest line. Shortly after the restart on lap 49 the green and white checkered flag waved, concluding stage one. Riggs was scored 29th.
• While the No. 11 was experiencing tight handling conditions, Riggs and his team opted to stay out during the stage caution to regain track position. Starting stage two from the 17th position, Riggs was heavily reminded to protect the bottom line. As he continued to fight in the bottom lane, Riggs was spun out by the No. 00 on lap 73, which brought out the caution. Pitting for tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment, Riggs restarted 32nd. The field fell under another caution nine laps into the run, and the No. 11 team decided to stay out. Restarting 24th on lap 94, Riggs was able to make gains to finish out stage two in the 18th position.
• Electing not to pit during the stage caution, Riggs restarted the final stage in the first position. As Riggs set the pace, he was reminded to be smart and to drive straight into the corners. After leading nine laps, the no. 11 succumbed to other cars with fresher tires and fell back to fourth. Maintaining in the top five, Riggs was spun again, this time be the no. 1 car on lap 153. Expressing that his Chevrolet had good drive off but was free on entry, he came to pit road for tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. As he was returning to the track, Riggs was plagued with another pit road penalty, this time he was too fast exiting in zone seven. Serving the penalty of restarting at the tail end of the longest line, Riggs fired off from 32nd on lap 160. Out of tires and bewitched by a slew of cautions, Riggs started to inch his way towards the front of the field. Back in the top five by lap 200, Riggs states that the consistent cautions were helping his advancement because the no. 11 machine was great for two to three laps and then fell off. With six laps to go Riggs was involved in a multi-car incident halting the field under a red flag. Riggs brought the Infinity Communications chevy to pit road for right side tires and fuel. Being penalized for pitting too early, Riggs restarted at the tail end of the longest line in 20th. With three laps to go the drama heated up and the field saw chaos in the final turn on the last lap. Becoming collected but still capable of driving, Riggs floored his chevy across the finish line to close out lap 250 in the 11th position.

“After surviving all of the adversity thrown at me and the 11 team and going from the back to the front multiple times, I am thrilled that we were able to limp across the finish line in 11th. I had a long of fun, learned a ton and even got to lead some laps. I am really thankful to my Kaulig Racing team and Infinity Communications for giving me the chance to live out my dreams by racing at such a high level. I hope we can work together again in the future.”

– Layne Riggs

Chandler Smith, No. 16 Quick Tie Products Chevrolet Camaro

• Chandler Smith qualified seventh for the Dead On Tools 250 at Martinsville Speedway.
• Smith took advantage of starting on the inside line to pick up a spot and move into 6th before the caution came out on lap six. He shuffled back to ninth on the lap-11 restart, where he ran until another caution came out on lap 42. Smith, in a must-win situation, brought the No. 16 Quick Tie Products Chevy down pit road for tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment, restarting in 16th on lap 50. He picked up seven positions to finish stage one in ninth.
• The race restarted on lap 69 with Smith running in fourth on pit strategy. He moved into third before the yellow flew on lap 74. After picking the outside for the restart on lap 80, Smith couldn’t move back down initially and fell to fourth. The race’s fifth caution came out on lap 89, and Smith chose the outside of row two for the green on lap 95. On older tires, he began falling down the top 10 but fought off a charge by the No. 00 to finish the second stage in seventh.
• Crew chief Bruce Schlicker called for a right-front packer adjustment to help the No. 16’s turnability during the full-service pit stop under caution. Smith restarted 15th on lap 130 and grabbed 13th before the yellow flew again on lap 154. After firing off on lap 161 one position higher in 12th, a check-up in front caused Smith to plow into traffic, giving the No. 16 engine damage. He pitted multiple times so the pit crew could attempt to fix the engine’s multitude of issues, but the Chevy’s water pressure rapidly dropped, and smoke began bellowing. Smith retired after 187 laps and finished 36th.

“The engine was about to blow up, and I was trying to manage temperatures. On the next restart, everyone stacked up again, and I got more damage. I’ve had a great year with these guys on the No. 16 team, and I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished as we close the year out next week at Phoenix.“

– Chandler Smith