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COLE CUSTER – 2017 Kentucky Race Advance

Event:               Alsco 300 (Round 16 of 33)
Date:                 July 7, 2017
Location:          Kentucky Speedway in Sparta
Layout:             1.5-mile oval

 

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

 

  • The Alsco 300 will mark Cole Custer’s 21st career NASCAR XFINITY Series start and his second XFINITY Series start at Kentucky Speedway.
  • In Custer’s first XFINITY Series race at Kentucky a year ago, he ran in and around the top-10 until he was struck by a lapped car while exiting his pit stall, ultimately ending his day on lap 138 of the 200-lap race.
  • Custer’s best finish in the 15 XFINITY Series races run this season is fourth, earned in the 11th race of the year June 3 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. It was his eighth top-10 and third top-five and it equaled his career-best finish in 20 career XFINITY Series starts.
  • Custer’s best qualifying effort in the 15 XFINITY Series races run this season is third, earned in the seventh race of the year April 22 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Custer has eight top-10 starts and three top-five starts this season.
  • In eight XFINITY Series starts and nine Camping World Truck Series starts at 1.5-mile tracks, Custer has three top-five finishes and nine top-10s. Custer has earned three top-10s this season at 1.5-mile tracks – Texas (fifth), Charlotte (seventh) and Atlanta Motor Speedway (10th).
  • Custer is third in the XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year standings, 47 points behind leader William Byron and one point behind second-place Daniel Hemric. Custer has earned five Rookie of the Race awards this season, three of which have come at 1.5-mile tracks – fifth at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, seventh at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway and 11th at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
  • Custer is seventh in the XFINITY Series driver standings, 216 points behind series leader Elliot Sadler.
  • Custer has been the highest-finishing XFINITY Series regular driver in four races this season – Charlotte, Dover, Pocono (Pa.) Raceway and Texas.
  • Custer has earned two top-five finishes, six top-10s, and has led 29 laps in the 2017 XFINITY Series season.

 

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

 

Explain racing around Kentucky. 

It’s a different place because it’s almost like Texas Motor Speedway, but with opposite corners. Turns one and two are pretty fast where you’re almost wide open on the throttle. Turns three and four, you have to use the brake and have to turn the center pretty good. It’s just two different ends that you have to deal with at Kentucky, but it’s an awesome track to go to. 

Are you looking forward to getting back to an intermediate track?  

“Yeah. I think the intermediate tracks have been really good for us and our Haas Automation Ford Mustang. Hopefully, we can bring the same kind of consistency. I think we’ve put a lot of emphasis on our bodies and chassis at the intermediate tracks and have tested at a few, as well.”

 

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

 

What are your thoughts about heading to Kentucky Speedway this weekend?

“After having a good run at Texas earlier in the year, we are anticipating another good run at Kentucky. Kentucky and Texas have very similar track surfaces and the tire we run at the two tracks is really close to one another. We are bringing one of our better cars this weekend. Chassis 970 was fast at Charlotte and California.”