Saturday, July 2, 2022
Race 16 of 33: Henry 180
Track Specs: 4.048-mile road course / 45 laps
Race Winner: Ty Gibbs
Paludo’s finish: 26th
Points position: 45th (-595)
Miguel Paludo had the No. 88 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet in the top 10 in the closing stages of Saturday’s Henry 180 at Road America, but contact with another car with just seven laps remaining forced the Brazilian champion to retire from the NASCAR Xfinity Series event with a 26th-place finish.
Race Rundown
- Paludo qualified his No. 88 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet in the 25th position for the scheduled 45-lap run around the big Road America course. Just seven laps into the event, Paludo told crew chief Jason Stockert that he had picked up a vibration and that he was tight in the pivotal Turn 5, leading to the back part of the course.
- Despite the handling issue and the vibration, Paludo was 17th and running lap times equal to the top 15 in the order when the caution flag waved at lap 8, just two laps shy of the Stage One conclusion. An extended cleanup pushed the cars to the stage break and Paludo crossed the line 17th. On pit road, Paludo received fuel and four tires with an air-pressure adjustment to help with the vibration.
- Restarting from the 22nd position, Paludo felt out his car’s handling for the first four laps before heading up the order. He was up to 16th at lap 17, three laps shy of the Stage Two conclusion, telling Stockert that his car was better in every area of the track. He gained one more position to 15thin the final laps of Stage Two to finish there. Paludo kept the BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet on the track over the stage break per the planned strategy for the event, rising to eighth in the order for the restart.
- Aware that he had cars with fresh tires behind on the restart, Paludo was intent on sticking with the strategy he and Stockert had planned. As a result, he was in position to narrowly miss a 13-car pileup in Turn 4 that caught up several others.
- As a result, Stockert called his driver to pit road at lap 27 for four tires and fuel with another air-pressure tweak, and Paludo rolled back out in 11th position for the restart with 17 laps remaining.
- In just one lap, Paludo jumped two positions to ninth and grabbed another spot to eighth just two laps later. Another caution flag waved at lap 35, and Stockert called Paludo to pit road once more for four tires and fuel to the end. The No. 88 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet would line up 12th for the restart.
- On the restart, Paludo settled into 15thposition, but a couple of laps later, contact with another car did damage to the front end of his Chevrolet. Heading to pit road for repairs, the damage proved too much to repair in the time remaining and Paludo’s day was finished in 26th position.
Miguel Paludo, driver No. 88 BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet team
“We had a fast BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet today and I can’t thank Rick (Brandt) and everyone at JR Motorsports enough for the opportunity. It’s unfortunate that we ran into some issues right there at the end, but I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel of this No. 88 at Indy in a couple weeks.”
Ron Lemasters | Public Relations
JR Motorsports
P.O. Box 330, Mooresville, NC 28115
Office: 704-799-4845