Gilliland Leads Laps & Wins Stage, but Gets Spun at Talladega

Todd Gilliland made his first superspeedway start on Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway. It was a special day for him. Not only was it his first superspeedway race, but one of his Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) teammates was his father, David Gilliland. Both were driving PEDIGREE® Toyota Tundras and even adopted a new family member (an eight-week-old puppy they named Winston) from the Greater Birmingham Humane Society during a PEDIGREE® appearance on Thursday. Both family members had a shot to win at the end, but the younger Gilliland was spun on lap 83 ending his bid for the win.
 
Stage One Recap:
  • Gilliland started sixth, but fell back through the field in the outside lane early in the race.
  • He worked his way back up and was sixth when the stage ended on lap 20 and pitted for fuel only on lap 23.
 
Stage Two Recap:
  • When the next 20-lap stage began Gilliland quickly moved up to third and was second by lap 36.
  • Gilliland made his move to the lead on lap 38 and won the second stage of the race. When pit road opened, he brought in his No. 4 PEDIGREE® Puppy Tundra in for four tires and fuel.
 
Stage Three Recap:
  • The final 54-lap stage began with Gilliland in eighth place.
  • His Dad was working his way up through the field after a pit road penalty earlier in the race so the father and son could draft together.
  • The “big one” struck on lap 59 taking out several competitors, but luckily both Gillilands made it through the carnage. Both pitted for fuel before the race resumed and returned to the track with Todd second and David third.
  • Shortly after the restart they made a move to the front with Todd leading David for several laps.
  • With 22 laps to go they fell back to fifth and sixth place. David’s line fell even farther back, while Todd moved back up to second place.

KBM PR