Pastrana finishes 15th in his first visit to his home track at Dover

DOVER, Del. – In his first start at his “home” track of Dover International Speedway, Travis Pastrana powered the No. 60 Roush Fenway Racing (RFR) Ford Mustang to a 15th-place finish.

Travis Pastrana

Photo by: Action Sports Photography

I want to be better – I want to be up top. For the first time here at this track, of course everyone hopes to win, but after yesterday I’m very happy with our finish.”

The NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) visited Dover for the first of two races this season at the tough one-mile track. Pastrana turned his first laps on the track nicknamed the “Monster Mile” during the only practice session of the weekend for the NNS on Friday.

The 200-mile race took the green flag shortly after 2:30 p.m. on a hot day in Dover, with Pastrana rolling off 16th. On Lap 16, he radioed to the crew that the car started the run on the tight side, but the more laps he ticked off, the better the car became.

On Lap 46, the No. 60 visited pit road for the first time under caution, electing to take four tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment in an effort to make the car just a little bit looser.

Pastrana restarted 14th and maintained his position in the top-15 until making his second pit stop of the day on Lap 79. The crew put on four new tires, filled the car with fuel and made another chassis adjustment to give Pastrana more grip.

On the following run, Pastrana was quiet on the radio, as he adjusted the line he was running on the track in an attempt pick up some more speed. He visited pit road from 17th-place for his third stop of the day on Lap 114.

Pastrana was still satisfied with his car on the long run, but wanted to be a little freer on exit. The No. 60 crew put on four tires, added fuel and made another chassis adjustment.

Pastrana restarted 17th and continued to run in the top-20, as passing was at a premium. As was the trend for the No. 60 during the race, the longer the green flag run continued, the happier Pastrana was with the car.

On Lap 161, the caution flag waved again. Pastrana was happy with the overall balance of the car, but told the crew he was struggling to figure out how to run faster around the track.

He visited pit road for the final time of the day on Lap 163, taking four more tires with an air pressure adjustment. He restarted 16th and was able to gain one position on the final run of the day, ultimately finishing 15th.

Joey Logano won his third straight NNS race at Dover, while Brian Vickers and Matt Kenseth took second and third. RFR teammate Trevor Bayne finished fourth, with Kyle Busch rounding out the top-five.

Roush Fenway Racing