Race 11 of 33: Pit Boss 250 at Circuit of the Americas
Track Specs: 3.410-mile road course / 46 laps
Weather: Mostly Cloudy; 80 degrees
Race Winner: Kyle Busch
Paludo’s Finish: 34th
Making his second start of 2021 for JR Motorsports, Miguel Paludo, driver of the No. 8 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet, ran up front and fought inside the top five towards the end of Stage One and throughout the majority of Stage Two in Saturday afternoon’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at the Circuit of the Americas. Then, while battling for position inside the top five, Paludo’s promising run came to an abrupt halt as he was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop before ultimately going to the garage with a mechanical failure on lap 25. Unable to return to the track, Paludo was relegated to a 34th-place finish.
Stage One Finish: 10th
Paludo lined up for the 46-lap event around the famed road course in 15th after the field was set via qualifying in the heavy rain on Saturday morning. Once underway the Nova Prata, Brazil native consistently rode around just outside of the top 10, in the 13th position, until a lap-10 yellow bunched the field together. Deciding to use a little strategy, the No. 8 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet came to pit road for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment to alleviate a loose-handling condition through Turns 16, 17 and 18. Restarting from 21st due to varying pit strategies, Paludo set his sights forward as he raced up to the 10th position as the green-and-white checkered flag waved to end Stage One on lap 14, earning the No. 8 team one stage point in the process.
Stage Two Finish: 34th
With Stage One in the books, Moyer made the call for Paludo to remain on the track while the race leaders came to pit road. As a result, the six-time Porsche Carrera Cup Champion took the green flag for the start of Stage Two in the fourth position on lap 16. The driver of the BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet continued to fight for position inside the top five until a mechanical failure forced the No. 8 Chevrolet behind the wall, ultimately ending his day on lap 25.
In the end, Paludo was scored with a 34th-place finish.
Miguel Paludo, driver No. 8 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet team
“I can’t thank everyone at JR Motorsports and BRANDT Professional Agriculture enough for this opportunity. We had a really strong run going in Stage Two and had a car that was capable of winning. Unfortunately, a piece on the car broke and that forced us behind the wall and ended our day early. I am looking forward to Mid-Ohio and hopefully we can put this No. 8 in Victory Lane.”
Saturday, May 22, 2021