RICHMOND RACE REPORT

Race 7 of 33: Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond International Raceway
Track Specs: .750-mile oval / 250 laps
Weather: Clear; 64 deg.
Race Winner: Kurt Busch
Whitt’s finish: 19th

Cole Whitt finished 19th to pace JR Motorsports’ two-car team in Friday night’s Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond International Raceway. Seeing stock car action for the first time at the short track, Whitt hung inside the top-10 with the TaxSlayer.com Chevrolet for a large portion of the race. Trouble found the 88 team when the rookie missed pit road under a green-flag stop, then received a speeding penalty on pit road. Both mishaps compounded to lead to the uncharacteristic finish.

Cole Whitt, driver No. 88 TaxSlayer.com team
“We certainly didn’t fulfill our expectations for this race. We practiced well and qualified well, but the race didn’t pan out. It was my fault we missed pit road under the green and then it got worse with the penalty. I think we were a top-10 car. But we went a little too far on one of the adjustments and when we had that long green-flag run, we were never able to get back to pit road in time to get it right.

“I’ve got to thank our friends at TaxSlayer. We wanted to do better for them tonight, especially since we were carrying a special Press On Fund decal for them. They’re trying to raise awareness for childhood cancer, and we’re just trying to do our part to help that cause.”