Mason Mitchell Motorsports General Tire 200 Post Race Report

For the third time as a team in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, Mason Mitchell Motorsports (MMM) fielded three entries for the General Tire 200 at the Talladega Superspeedway this past weekend with Kyle Weatherman in the No. 78, Brandon Lynn in the No. 88 and Leilani Munter wheeling the No. 98.

After winning the 2016 General Tire 200 at the Talladega Superspeedway, MMM had high expectations entering the fourth race on the 2017 schedule.

Kyle Weatherman started the 76-lap event from the fifth position. Weatherman positioned himself inside the top-five and made his only stop down pit-road at lap 24. The 78 crew was able to return Weatherman to the race with the lead. Weatherman’s fortune changed on lap 36. As the field was coming through the tri-oval Weatherman was involved in a multi-car incident. The damage was too great to return to the race. Weatherman would finish the event in the 32nd position.

Brandon Lynn driving the No. 88 started deeper in the field from the 20th position applying patience worked his way inside the top-15 in the opening laps. Lynn brought the No. 88 down pit-road for fuel only lap 24. Lynn entered the pits in the 15th position and the MMM crew returned him to the race in the seventh spot.

 Lynn worked his way inside the top-five for the first time at lap 32. Lynn continued to steer the No. 88 machine inside the top-five and took the lead on the outside line utilizing a push from Riley Herbst. Lynn held off numerous challenges from contenders and took the white flag as the leader. As the field entered turn-three for the final time a wreck happened on the backstretch bringing out the caution. As the field slowed, Lynn’s fuel tank began to sputter. Lynn would finish his debut with MMM in 18th after leading 19 laps.

In a joint effort between Venturini Motorsports and MMM Leilani Munter made her second ARCA start of the 2017 season driving the VeganPowered.org/ WAN No. 98. Munter started from the 28th position after qualifying was rained out on Friday. Munter positioned herself inside the top-20 early and was logging laps.  Munter received right side damage after a car ahead of her swerved to avoid a slower car who lost a tire. Munter received damage to the right front and came down pit-road for two tires.

Munter’s afternoon ended right after the halfway point when her No. 98 experienced transmission issues. The issue resulted in a 28th place finish.

Quotes from Kyle Weatherman

“Our day started off great in the St Charles Glass/Turn One Condos Chevrolet. We were just riding turning laps. The MMM guys had a great pit-stop which got us into the lead and we led several laps.

Unfortunately, we were involved in an incident coming through the tri-oval that ended our day. I really felt like if we just made it to the end we would have had a great opportunity to challenge for the win.

We will be back and stronger than ever. Thanks to Chrome Divas and A Kid Again for their support. Wish we could have given them a better end result.”

Quotes from Brandon Lynn

“We drove our tails off to get to the front and managed the race smart. We had the car to beat and I believe we could’ve held off everyone coming to the checkers. Unfortunately, we just didn’t have enough gas. Thanks so much to Worth-A-Shot and Remodeez for coming on board with us this weekend.

I can’t thank everyone at MMM enough for everything they did for me this weekend. They prepare top notch racecars and are a great group to work with! I also want to all the fans, friends and family who were watching and in attendance. Hopefully I can be back behind the wheel again very soon At least they knew we were here this weekend.”

Quotes from Leilani Munter:

“Today wasn’t the result that we were hoping for but I can’t thank everyone at VeganPower.org and WAN for their support to make this happen. We were just taking our time getting to the front and got caught up in someone else’s misfortune.

I can’t thank Mason Mitchell Motorsports and Venturini Motorsports enough for working together and making this possible. They are both top notch organizations.”

Quotes from Competition Director/Crew Chief Kevin Reed

“Going into Talladega with three cars everyone was excited. The team had a lot of momentum from Daytona, Nashville, and Salem and had high hopes of Winning and sealing the deal. Restrictor plate racing is hard enough without adding Rain and delays to the weekend. We were dealt all of it at Talladega.

The cars Drivers and Teams all performed very well again This weekend we just did not have any racing luck. Leilani in the 98 got damage early, Kyle got tangled up in a mess on the fronstretch, and Brandon in the 88 did a great job all day listening to Spotter Eddie Dhoundt. Unfortunately, he ran out of gas on the green/white checker attempt while leading. My Mason Mitchell Motorsports guys have outperformed any other team in the garage this year and we have a lot to be proud of. When luck turns our way we’ll be fine.” 

MMM PR