Bad Luck Bites Sauter at Martinsville Speedway

Johnny Sauter started from the third position in the No. 21 Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevrolet for Saturday’s Alpha Energy Solutions 250 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The Necedah, Wis., native ran in the top five until an incident on lap 43 concluded the No. 21 team’s day.

Running in the second position, Sauter reported on lap 29 that the No. 21 Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevrolet was beginning to get tight. Crew chief Marcus Richmond reminded Sauter to stay patient and go easy on his brakes early in the event. After completing 43 laps in the 250-lap event, a blown right front tire sent Sauter into the outside wall. The GMS Racing team determined that there was too much damage to the No. 21 to return to the track, ending Sauter’s hope for a third-career Martinsville Speedway victory.

By virtue of winning the season opener at Daytona International Raceway, Sauter is all but guaranteed a spot in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series chase. He is currently 18th in the point standings.
 
Johnny Sauter Quote:
“We just lost a right front tire and it took off up the track. I didn’t feel it coming and it’s unfortunate that our day ended this way, but that’s short track racing. We had a really fast Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevrolet. Marcus (Richmond, crew chief) did a great job finding speed and we knew we had a shot at a win.”

Next Race:   
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will return to action on Friday, May 6 at Kansas Speedway.

GMS Racing PR