Fathers Day weekend brought another new track to Blake Koch as he works to become the 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year. Blake took another big step towards that goal with a strong last stint, bringing the Daystar Television Network home in 25th place. With the teams strong run, Blake earned his 4th Sunoco Rookie of the Race award of the season.
Practice Friday was crucial for Blake and the No. 81 team as he took his first laps on the blazingly fast 2 mile oval in the Irish Hills of Michigan. The team worked on getting a good balance for the car and were 26th on the time sheets. Qualifying may have been the biggest surprise of the weekend as Blake went out 19th and went straight to the top of the board. He stayed there for 5 cars until finally being knocked out of the top spot. When qualifying came to an end, the MacDonald Motorsports No. 81 was 18th, giving them their best starting position all season.
The Alliance Truck Parts 250 started under a beautiful blue sky and the Daystar team was pumped up for a great run. The car was loose at the beginning and Blake struggled to keep it underneath him. The crew was able to make adjustments and use pit strategy to set themselves up for a strong finish. The last ¼ of the race proved to be the best ¼ as Blake ran down and passed the No. 15 of Timmy Hill to capture Rookie of the Race honors.
Everyone was happy on the Daystar team as Blake “Finished Strong,” and earned his 6th top-25 finish of the season. Blake remains 23rd in the driver standings and MacDonald Motorsports is now tied for 27th in the owner’s standings.
Michigan was the first of a 14-straight week run for the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Nest week they will make their first trip of the season to a road course. Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI will be the venue for the Bucyrus 200 on Saturday June 25th. The race can be seen live on ESPN at 5:30 pm EST.
MacDonald Motorsports PR
