Strategic gamble lands Bayne a 10th-place finish at Daytona International Speedway

DAYTONA, Fla. – Roush Fenway Racing’s No. 6 team took a cautious approach, hanging in the back of the pack during Friday night’s NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) race at Daytona International Speedway (DIS).

Trevor Bayne

Photo by: Action Sports Photography

Trevor Bayne hoped to protect the Winn-Dixie car in case a massive wreck took out the field ahead. But “the big one” never came, leaving Bayne in 10th-place as the Checkered flag dropped on the Subway Firecracker 250.

“We’re points racing now, so one bad race can take us out of the hunt so we tried to be smart,” said Bayne as he walked away from the track. “We got a top-ten finish, but it was a tough race to get through. It was not fun to ride around in the back.”

Bayne started the race in eighth place, with his Roush Fenway teammate Travis Pastrana starting on the outside pole. Early in the race, Bayne and Pastrana made their strategy clear; the pair dropped to the back of the pack right from the start in order to protect their cars from potential accidents ahead.

As the race wound down, Bayne and Pastrana began to make their move to the front. At one point, Bayne jumped more than 10 positions in fewer than 10 laps. He fought his way to 10th-place, but ran out of time to advance further.

Bayne summed it up saying, “we tried to work our way to the front at the end but it just didn’t pay off.” At the end of the day he walked away with his eight top-10 finish of the season and another 35 points in the NNS standings.

Bayne is holding steady in 10th place; 70-points behind leader Regan Smith. The No.6 Cargill Ford Mustang will return to the track next Saturday in New Hampshire.

Roush Fenway Racing