Red Horse Racing Michigan International Speedway Race Report

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In: NASCAR Truck Series News

Parker Kligerman
No. 7 Red Horse Racing Toyota Tundra
Start: 11th
Finish: 4th
Point Standings: 5th

Making his first start in the No. 7 Red Horse Racing Toyota Tundra on Saturday at Michigan International Speedway, Parker Kligerman set his sights on a solid finish to bring home after his crew worked countless hours to put together his Tundra for competition over the past week. New pavement on the two-mile asphalt oval created pack racing that relied heavily on drafting, much like restrictor plate racing. Kligerman put his driving skills to work and raced tight with the lead pack from the drop of the green flag, allowing him to pull away with a fourth place finish.

Very content after climbing into the seat of his No. 7 Red Horse Racing Tundra for the first time on Friday, Kligerman finished two of the three NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) practice sessions prior to the scheduled end time. Crew chief Chad Kendrick and Kligerman agreed that the race would come down to hanging on in the draft and avoiding incidents to make it to the end for a chance at the win. With that strategy in mind, along with a stout Tundra underneath him, Kligerman methodically picked his way into the lead pack, just outside the top-five within the first few laps of the VFW 200.

Calling to Kendrick for the first time on lap eight, Kligerman reported his Tundra was too loose for his liking, especially in the draft in turns three and four. His first chance to pit came on lap 13 during the first debris caution, allowing his Red Horse Racing crew to make a few adjustments and help tighten him up.

After the restart, Kligerman continued his charge while drafting with the leaders through the next portion of the event, staying just within striking distance. His No. 7 Tundra still remained a little loose in traffic, but Kendrick assured his driver that everyone was fighting the same battle and he just needed to hang on until the end.

Following the final caution of the afternoon on lap 59, Kligerman held his position with the front pack and found himself in contention as the laps wound down. Crew chief Chad Kendrick called his driver down pit road with less than 15 laps remaining and the Red Horse Racing pit crew gave their driver enough fuel to make it to the finish. Running in seventh when the white flag flew, Kligerman passed a couple of trucks as they ran out of fuel in front of him and the No. 7 Tundra came across the finish line in fourth place.

“No one had told me there was fuel mileage racing at the end of the race, so when we passed a few trucks there on the last lap, I thought I just made a pass for the win,” Kligerman described.

“But fourth place is an awesome start for this No. 7 Red Horse Racing team. I can’t say thank you enough to Toyota, Toyota Racing Development and everyone on this team that spent so many hours in the shop over the past week to get this Tundra to the track. I’m so thankful for this opportunity and I look at a run like we had today and I know that this is an organization that can go win the championship.”

No. 11
Todd Bodine
No. 11 Toyota Care Toyota Tundra
Start: 15th
Finish: 24th     
Point Standings: 14th  

The No. 11 Toyota Care Tundra team and Todd Bodine entered the VFW 200 at Michigan International Speedway optimistic to rebound after a plague of bad luck. Bodine battled forward after starting from the rear of the field due to a mechanical repair after qualifying and captured the lead just before halfway. While battling inside the top-five, Bodine was tagged by another competitor and sustained significant left side damage, which would ultimately cut down his left rear tire and end his afternoon a few short laps later with a 24th place finish.

During his qualifying lap on Saturday morning, Bodine felt a vibration underneath this Toyota Care Tundra. Taking all precautions and not leaving anything to chance, crew chief Rick Gay and his crew quickly changed the transmission and rear end gear in their Tundra. The changes would force Bodine to start from the tail of the field, but would remedy the vibrations he felt.

Wasting no time after the drop of the green, the two-time NCWTS champion broke into the top-20 before lap 10. He reported only a slight loose handling condition, which Gay would remedy with a minor chassis adjustment and four fresh tires under the first caution on lap 12. Bodine remained quiet after the restart, continuing to work his way through the pack up into the top-15.

Under the second caution period of the afternoon when most teams chose to take tires, Gay elected to do just a splash of fuel for his driver and sent him back out to the track with the lead. Restarting from the lead on lap 42, Bodine held his own among the lead pack and comfortably rode in the top three after leading the first few laps. Unexpectedly on lap 47, another competitor dove underneath Bodine and broke loose, sliding up the track into the No. 11 Tundra. The contact sent The Onion spinning and caused significant left side damage.

Gay organized his crew and called out directions to fix the damage as Bodine brought his battered Tundra down pit road for repairs. After pulling back sheet metal and changing tires, the crew sent their driver back out to competition just before the restart. Despite the repairs, the damage was too extensive and ultimately cut down the left rear tire, sending Bodine spinning into the retaining wall the next lap. Unable to make repairs this time around, Bodine completed his day in 24th.

 “The aerodynamics in these trucks is so sensitive that things get really touchy really quickly. So I’m not sure exactly what happened with the contact but it happens with this kind of racing,” Bodine explained.

“We’ve just been having one of those years where things just don’t seem to go right. But this Red Horse Racing team is tough. It’s just a great team to work with. Rick Gay gave me a fast Toyota Care Tundra just like every week so far this season. We were going with strategy to get some track position and Rick did a great job with the call, it just didn’t pay off this time. Nothing we could do different but I’m still proud of this team and the Tundra we had today.”

No. 17
Timothy Peters
No. 17 Red Horse Racing Toyota Tundra
Start: 9th
Finish: 13th
Point Standings: 1st

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship points leader Timothy Peters and the No. 17 Red Horse Racing team traveled to Michigan Speedway with a brand new chassis ready for battle in the VFW 200. Looking for stability and the correct balance throughout the weekend, Peters and his crew never relented in their search and survived an intense 200 miles to come home in 13th.

The new racing surface on the two-mile oval threw most teams, including the No. 17 Red Horse Racing team, a curve ball during practice and qualifying. After searching for a good balance and stability in his Tundra, Peters qualified ninth and stayed just outside the top-10 looking in after the first few laps. He reported to crew chief Butch Hylton before the first caution and round of pit stops on lap 12 that he wasn’t getting enough stability and was pretty loose all the way through the corners. Hylton called for fuel and a chassis adjustment to help remedy the handling situation.

The first round of changes wasn’t quite enough and Peters elected to ride just behind the lead pack until the next opportunity for pit stops. That chance would come on lap 40, when the crew made some significant changes to help tighten up their Tundra. Making the changes in near record time, the Red Horse Racing crew sent Peters back out for battle.

Peters relayed to Hylton and his crew that the changes seemed to help, but he still needed to be tightened up more in order to run with the front pack. The next opportunity for another adjustment came just past halfway; as Peters brought his Tundra down pit road under the fourth caution of the afternoon for another substantial change.

With encouragement and backing from his team, Peters raced solidly within the top-15 for the second half of the event and laid down fast lap times that helped him close the gap between himself and the front pack. A fuel mileage gamble played out as the final 41 laps of the event were run caution-free and Peters was forced to come down pit road with just a few laps remaining to receive enough fuel to make it to the finish. The NCWTS points leader fought back and moved forward in the closing laps following the stop to finish 13th.

Hylton was compliementary of his crew after a race filled with several strategy calls and extensive changes made during pit stops to their No. 17 Red Horse RacingTundra.

“This Red Horse Racing team just never quits,” Hylton explained. “No matter what happens during the race, we will always get it done. We didn’t have the best Tundra today but sometimes that’s the way it is. Our guys never stopped working as hard as they could and made all the changes they needed to very quickly. We threw everything we could at it today and that’s all you can do. But the teamwork that this organization shows is what it takes to make it to the top.

Peters echoed his crew chief’s compliments of the No. 17 crew following their efforts at Michigan.

 “It was kind of a frustrating day because I ran wide open the whole race and just couldn’t go anywhere. But despite that, I couldn’t be more proud of these guys that work on this Toyota Tundra than I already am. They’re behind me week in and week out and they never stopped working to make this truck better all day long. All in all, we’ll leave here and go to Bristol and just redeem ourselves and do what we did at Iowa. I like Bristol and I really feel at home at short tracks like that,” Peters concluded.

Championship Points Update: Following the VFW 200 at Michigan International Speedway, Timothy Peters is now tied for first place in the NCWTS championship point standings. Parker Kligerman moved up to fifth, just 25 markers behind teammate and leader Peters after his fourth place effort. Todd Bodine slid back one position to 14th after his day ended in the garage due to an incident just past halfway. Team owner Tom DeLoach still sits in the top spot in owner’s championship points.

RHR PR

Speedway Digest Staff
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