Xfinity Series Race Report - Chicagoland
September 19, 2015
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Track: Chicagoland Speedway
Race: Furious 7 300
Date: September 19, 2015
No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang – Ryan Blaney
Start: 5th
Finish: 35th
Status: Accident
Laps Completed: 108/200
Laps Led: 0
Owners' Points Position: 1st (+43)
Recap: Ryan Blaney and the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang finished the Furious 7 300 at Chicagoland Speedway in the 35th position on Saturday night after suffering two blown tires and eventually succumbed to damage that knocked him out of the race early. Blaney started the event from the fifth position and quickly moved to third early in the event. Once Blaney got settled, he communicated to the team that his Ford Mustang was good, just a little tight and needed help in the center. Things started going bad early when, on lap 21, Blaney’s Mustang blew a left rear tire and Blaney made contact with the wall in turn two. The team made repairs on pit road and returned to the track in the 27th position on the lead lap. Blaney would race his way back to the 12th position before eventually losing a lap to the leaders. On lap 102, Blaney would blow a right front tire and hit the wall again, causing extensive damage to the Discount Tire Mustang. Blaney took his Ford to the garage for his team to make repairs before returning to the race on lap 145, 42 laps down to the leaders. Once Blaney returned to the track, the previous damage to his car was too severe and he hit the wall again, causing him to retire from the race. The 21-year-old driver would finish the race in the 35th position. Despite the frustrating finish, the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford team still leads XFINITY Series Owners’ point standings by 43 markers over the No. 54 of Joe Gibbs Racing.
Quote: "We had a good Ford Mustang. It was really unfortunate we had the issues we did today. We had a lot of guests from Discount Tire come out and just disappointed we couldn’t get a good run for them. I just have to thank everyone at Penske, Ford and Discount Tire for the opportunity. We will put this behind us and look forward to Kentucky."