CHINA GROVE, N.C. (July 18, 2010) – Alex “Kid” Kennedy made his second NASCAR Nationwide Series start at Gateway International Raceway this past weekend. With high hopes for a good run, the 18-year old from Aztec, N.M. had a deflating start to his oval-track debut in the No. 23 MediaMaster Chevrolet for R3 Motorsports.
After qualifying a disappointing 42nd, Kennedy and crew chief Steve Plattenberger knew the car would race much better. And, they were right because Kennedy put the pedal to the metal and went from 42nd to 30th in the first two laps. Settling in to a rhythm to see how much different track conditions were since their morning practice sessions, Kennedy kept pace with the lead pack in 31st position by lap 15.
Just three laps later, he radioed in to the team that something was wrong as the car wasn’t handling in the turns. That “something” was a right-rear flat tire. Thinking like a veteran, Kennedy nursed the No. 23 Chevrolet to pit road without tearing it up so the team could change the two right-side tires and top it off with fuel.
This was the second-consecutive week this happened to R3 Motorsports as Robert Richardson, Jr. had a right-front flat last week at Chicagoland Speedway on just the ninth lap. It’s tough to race when you’re trapped down two and three laps to the leaders less than 20 laps into the event.
However, that didn’t deter Kennedy from racing like he was on the lead lap. Through several pit stops and one “wave around” under caution, Kennedy was able to move the No. 23 MediaMaster Chevrolet to two laps down while running 34th.
At one point, he was running with the 14th, 15th and 16th place cars maintaining their race pace on the tricky 1.25-mile oblong oval. As attrition and mechanical woes affected other teams, Kennedy did what he had to do and remained in the race to gain more positions.
By the halfway point of the 200-lap race, Kennedy was running 29th and by lap 150 he was 27th. In the latter stages, multiple cautions slowed the pace of the race. One the lap 189 restart while running 26th, the lead cars started to slow in front of him anticipating the green flag.
A car in front made contact with the right front fender of the No. 23 Chevrolet causing enough damage to force Kennedy to pit road for repairs. The pit crew leapt into action and made the necessary repairs, without losing a lap, for Kennedy to keep pace.
After a wild finish where multiple cars were wrecked coming to the checkered flags, Kennedy stayed out of trouble to finish 24th. As a result, the No. 23 Chevrolet of R3 Motorsports moved up one position to 26th in the Owner’s Points standings.
Alex Kennedy Quotes: “I hate we had that flat tire so early in the race. It robs you of the chance to compete and race for positions on the track before you get started. Gateway is a tricky track because of the way it’s laid out, but the more laps I did the more comfortable I became.
“Turns 2 and 3 are the tricky ones, but once I started to figure them out our lap times were pretty good. I was out there running right along with some of the lead lap cars, which was good. I just wish we could have done it on the lead lap with them.
“Once again, this R3 Motorsports team was great in everything they did to get the car ready and give me all I needed to race. It was great to be back in the car and I’m looking forward to my next time with this team.”
Note: Kennedy is scheduled to run Watkins Glen and Montreal, and more races if the proper marketing partnerships can be obtained. R3 Motorsports is still seeking primary and associate partnerships for Robert Richardson, Jr. and all races for the remainder of the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series season. For marketing opportunities with R3 Motorsports, contact Tim Packman at 704-507-1838 or timpackman@yahoo.com