RACE RESULTS

10th: Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 SONAX Chevrolet
13th: Ed Carpenter, No. 33 Alzamend Neuro Chevrolet
18th: Conor Daly, No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet

NEXT RACE: Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 10 (NBC, 3 p.m. ET)

CONOR DALY, NO. 20 BITNILE CHEVROLET

CONOR DALY, No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet, Finished 18th: “This is not how we wanted our day to play out. I am still not sure what was going on in regards to our two drive-through penalties, it didn’t seem like the pit speed limiter was agreeing with my right foot. We need to get deep into the data, I’ve never had a pit speeding penalty my entire career. It’s not something I am used to! The BitNile Chevy was really fast today. We had a great, great racecar. We were working through the field, on the right strategy, but when you have two drive-throughs in ruins your race. It’s a shame to have that happen to us as I thought we could have been very competitive. It is what it is and we’ll move on to the next one!”

OF NOTE: 

• The XPEL 375 was Daly’s first oval race with ECR outside of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In yesterday’s qualifications, his two-lap average earned him the 16th starting position. 

• Though his race was off to a solid start, Daly was hit with two drive-through penalties for pit lane speed violations on different pit stops. Both penalties made it increasingly difficult for him to utilize his competitive No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet and charge forward.

• Daly kept fighting through to the checkered flag, picking up positions when the opportunities did present themselves. He would finish the race in the 18th position. 

RINUS VEEKAY, NO. 21 SONAX CHEVROLET

RINUS VEEKAY, No. 21 SONAX Chevrolet, Finished 10th: “That was a hectic race! I actually wasn’t too happy with the car when I started the race. I had a lot of understeer which had me pit a little bit early. After that front wing adjustment and new tires, I felt awesome. We were very fast. I could race at the front and had an awesome restart. We may have stopped a lap or two too early on the last stop. We were definitely hoping for a yellow to come and we would have been golden, but that didn’t happen. P10 it is! Pretty happy we made it over the line with a running engine, we were really tight on fuel. If we can call this a race not going our way, it’s pretty good!”

OF NOTE:

• Rinus VeeKay started the XPEL 375 from the 8th position, matching his best starting position at the track. Fighting understeer, he slid back to 12th during the first stint. A front wing adjustment and a fresh set of Firestone Firehawks were just what he needed and after his first stop on Lap 53, he moved back into the Top 10. 

• VeeKay made his second stop under yellow on Lap 103 and quick work by the No. 21 SONAX Chevrolet crew vaulted him up to 6th. Lengthy cautions followed and green flag racing finally resumed on Lap 149. Within 10 laps, VeeKay had raced up to the lead. 

• He made his final pit stop on Lap 186 and was the first car to pit. He cycled back up to the second position, but had to begin saving fuel to make it to the end. The late-race yellow the team was hopeful for did not come, but VeeKay managed to make it to the end of the 248 laps and finished in the 10th position. 

ED CARPENTER, NO. 33 ALZAMEND NEURO CHEVROLET

ED CARPENTER, No. 33 Alzamend Neuro Chevrolet, Finished 13th: “It wasn’t a day I am super happy about, but it’s also not a day I am super upset about. We started pretty far back, so it was a good to move forward. There were a couple of things I could have done a little better for sure, but it was a decent showing. It’s good to get one under our belt as a group with the 33 crew. Looking ahead to Indy, we’ll have a lot more time there to get ready to go. It was an acceptable start, we definitely wanted more but it could have been worse!”

OF NOTE:

• As Ed Carpenter competes exclusively in the oval events, today’s race was his first since August of 2021. With Conor Daly racing the No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet this season, Carpenter has transitioned over to the new No. 33 Alzamend Neuro Chevrolet. Yesterday was the first day for the No. 33 to be on track and Carpenter qualified 21st. 

• The XPEL 375 was Carpenter’s 22nd start at Texas Motor Speedway and he put that experience towards a clean and consistent race. At the close of the 248 laps, he finished in the 13th position.

• Carpenter cycled into the lead on Lap 194 and paced the field for four laps. By leading today’s XPEL 375, Carpenter has led at least one race in 14 of the past 15 seasons.