“Rookie Struggles In Vegas”

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series rookie Chase Montgomery was looking for some Las Vegas luck on Saturday, but like most visitors to the “city that never sleeps” he did not find that luck.  Montgomery and his #8 DODGE struggled to a 27th place finish in the running of the Las Vegas 350 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"It was just another one of those rough evenings out there,” said Chase.  We had a pretty good truck earlier today and it was good at the start of the race.  But the truck just seemed to quickly go away for us.  We then had a bad set of tires and it made the evening that much longer.  This was a frustrating night for me and this whole team as we had high hopes for a solid finish.  We just need to rebound with a solid performance in California next week and put this race behind us."

Montgomery started the 146 lap event from the 22nd position as a result of his qualifying effort earlier in the day under sunny and warm conditions at the 1.5-mile track in the desert.  The BHR2 team felt confident in their #8 DODGE truck as the sun set in the west and race time approached.

The drop of the green flag on Saturday night commenced the excitement of the evening and saw Chase quickly gain a few positions on the first laps.  However, the handling of the truck seemed to also quickly go away as Montgomery slid back through the field.  A timely caution on lap 20 allowed for the team to come down pit road for service and much needed adjustments.  The adjustments seemed to help the 20-year-old and his DODGE machine and a second pit stop on lap 40 further helped the handling issues.

After getting the handle on their truck, Montgomery and his team were then hit with another unlucky break as a bad set of tires resulted in valuable track position being lost after a pit stop on lap 89.  The end result was Montgomery being stuck a few laps down and ultimately having to settle for the disappointing 27th place finish.

“I guess this is all part of the learning process and of paying your dues,” said Chase.  “This team refuses to give up and we seem to rebound each time we are presented with these types of circumstances.  Our time will come and we just have to be prepared to when it does.  I want to thank the Stratosphere Hotel & Casino for the great hospitality they have given us this week – it has been great.”

The finish kept Chase in the 22nd spot in the driver’s standings.  He also maintains his close 5th place standing in the highly contested battle for the rookie of the year honor.

Chase and his BHR2 team will now turn their focus a little further westward as they look to rebound this weekend as the series heads to the California Speedway.