Event: Monster Energy Open(non-points event)
Series: Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format: 50 laps, broken into three stages (20 laps/20 laps/10 laps)
Start/Finish: 1st/ 6th(Running, completed 50 of 50 laps)
Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-20):
- Aric Almirolastarted first and finished sixth.
- Almirola put the No. 10 Smithfield/Waffle House Ford Fusion into the lead right at the beginning of the race and paced the field for the first 11 laps.
- Almirola noted that the front end of his car began to plow on lap 12.
- Pitted for four tires, fuel and adjustments at the end of Stage 1.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 21-40):
- Started seventh and finished sixth.
- Almirola drove back to second place before he was shuffled out of the lead draft and fell to seventh place.
Stage 3 Recap (Laps 41-50):
- Started third and finished sixth.
- Almirola ran in and around the top-five during the final 10-lap dash.
- Almirola’s Smithfield/Waffle House Ford found momentum on the last lap, but was caught behind traffic as the stage ended.
Next Up:
The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning at 5:30 p.m.