With a disappointing finish in the rear-view mirror from last weekend’s VetTix | Camping World 200 at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway, CR7 Motorsports and driver Codie Rohrbaugh have their heads down with fins up looking to bounce back in Saturday’s Baptist Health 200 at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway.
A solid 16th place starting position for the family-owned team had everyone on the team humble about their potential for their fourth consecutive top-20 finish, but a flat tire halfway through the race and the lack of cautions worked against Rohrbaugh and his No. 9 Grant County Mulch Chevrolet Silverado throughout the remainder of the race and left a sour 33rd place finish in their mouths.
It is a new week though with another opportunity to shine and a chance for Rohrbaugh to contend for his second top-10 finish of the year.
“Atlanta was a bummer,” said Rohrbaugh. “We had some speed in our No. 9 Grant County Mulch Chevrolet Silverado but unfortunately, we were one of several trucks that experienced a flat tire during the race and didn’t have the cautions fall our way to allow a chance to recover.
“It was tough to swallow, but we didn’t have much time to fret on it. We’re going to Homestead still humble but with a boost of encouragement from within to put us back on track.”
Rohrbaugh, 26, will make his second start at Homestead’s 1.5-mile speedway this weekend. And while a respectable 26th place finish was acceptable for the new team, the Petersburg, West Virginia native says any finish outside the top-20 will be frustrating.
“As a team, I think we’re in a much better position going to Homestead this time around. My crew chief Doug (George) is a smart guy who works hard and has had some success at Homestead in the past.
“It’s not the easiest track to drive. It is a track that boasts a low groove and a high groove while drives a little different compared to other intermediate tracks because of its layout. It is still a fun place to race, but this is our time to shine. We did that at Daytona, and it was a good shot in the arm to everyone.
“Going into the off week, it would be great to end this stretch of racing with a little momentum on our side and feel good about where our program is heading into the summer stretch.”
Speaking of George, the veteran crew chief has 10 prior starts at Homestead as the team leader with a best finish of seventh with former Truck Series champion Johnny Sauter in 2015.
After four races, Rohrbaugh is 17th in the championship standings, 29 points from 10th. Following Homestead, the Statesville, N.C.-based team will return to ARCA Menards Series competition at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway for the General Tire 200 on Sat., Jun. 20, 2020 with newcomer Jason Kitzmiller.
CR7 Motorsports has 14 NGOTS starts to their credit with a career-best finish of third at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway (February 2020). Additionally, the team owns another top-10 finish at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in October 2019. An 11th place qualifying effort at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway (Oct. 2019) is the team’s best time trials effort to date.
In 20 career ARCA starts, Rohrbaugh has a best finish of seventh twice at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (July 2018 and Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway (February 2019). He has qualified a career-best fourth on four different occasions most recently at Kansas Speedway (Oct. 2018).
Marketing partnership(s) opportunities are available for the No. 97 Grant County Mulch Chevrolet and No. 9 Grant County Mulch Chevrolet for the 2020 ARCA Menards Series and NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series seasons and beyond. Interested inquiries are encouraged to contact at [email protected] or 304.257.8783.
The Baptist Health 200 (134 laps| 201 miles) is the fifth of 23 NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series races on the 2020 schedule. The 40-truck field will take the green flag shortly after 7:30 p.m. with live coverage on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Satellite Radio, Channel 90). All times are local (Eastern).
CR7 Motorsports PR
