At the recent World Wide Technology Raceway event, Zane Smith encountered a series of setbacks that affected his race performance despite showing early promise. The challenges during the race, including a communication issue and unfortunate timing on pit stops, led to Smith finishing 33rd overall.
Race Progress and Obstacles for Smith and Fellow Drivers
Zane Smith began strong, placing ninth in the opening stage and sixteenth in the second stage. However, a radio malfunction prevented him from pitting at a critical moment, forcing him to stay out while others did not. Later, a green flag pit cycle caution put him a lap down, cutting off any chance of recovery during the race.
Noah Gragson also had a difficult day, finishing 30th after placing 24th and 21st in the two stages. He explained,
“We worked our way up through the field and had the car really dialed in. That caution after our pit cycle set us back a lap, and we just couldn’t recover from it, but I’m proud of the effort from everyone on the team. They gave me a fast car, and we’ll carry that speed and momentum to Bristol this weekend.”
—Noah Gragson, Driver
Todd Gilliland faced similar struggles, ending 32nd after coming in 34th and 28th in the stages. Reflecting on his performance, he said,
“This is one of those races you just have to learn from your mistakes and move on. We struggled all day and then got trapped a lap down at the very end and that just made our bad day worse. Hopefully Bristol goes better for us.”
—Todd Gilliland, Driver
Team Effort and Looking Ahead to Bristol
Despite the difficulties, the drivers acknowledged the quality of their equipment and expressed determination to improve. Zane Smith summarized the situation, stating,
“We had a really good car but also some really bad luck. Between a radio issue that made us stay out when we needed to pit, and getting trapped lap down on a green flag pit cycle caution, we just couldn’t catch a break.”
—Zane Smith, Driver
The team remains focused on overcoming these setbacks as they prepare for the upcoming Bristol NASCAR Cup race, aiming to translate the speed and effort into better results.
