By Jerry Jordan, Editor
Erik Jones has seven Top 10s in 2023 but his run at Kansas Speedway, on Sunday, notched his first Top 3 of the NASCAR season as he kept the No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet up front for most of the 400-mile race.
After getting out of the car he knew he had a chance to notch a win but sometimes bad luck happens in racing.
“Yeah, I just needed to clear the 22 in 3 and 4, which I tried to do all I could, it’s just when a guy gets loose under you and kind of runs you up, you get tight, too, so I had to lift, and then the 45 obviously had a big run there,” Jones said, noting that he hates he couldn’t get the win but content with a solid run. “You’re going to be frustrated, but you’ve got to be happy with the run. I think all day the Allegiance Chevy was fast, and we were up in contention.”
Jones posted on X, formerly Twitter, “Man, it felt good to be up there at the end. Would have loved to be taking home a win but proud of our P3 finish. Solid day for the 43 crew.”
Jones said recently his team has been improving all season but has also run into a few setbacks here and there. Still, the incremental steps they’ve taken to be part of the conversation at the end of races paid off at Kansas. He expects the momentum to continue as the Legacy Motor Club organization continues to grow.
“We were able to drive through the field a handful of times,” he said. “It was a good day. It’s probably the fastest car we’ve had all year. Would have loved to sneak one out there, but our year has been up and down, and to have a good run like that is just a good day for the team.”
Riding along in spirit with most of the drivers in the field were cancer heroes from all walks of life. As part of the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation’s program to honor cancer victims, the teams and drivers gave up space above the door where the driver’s name is typically placed to recognize those who are battling childhood or ovarian cancer, as well as, those who lost their fight.
Jones posted about his experience and shared his gratitude for being able to honor one of those special people. He will meet the family of Perry Whited this weekend.
“Had someone special riding along with me this weekend,” Jones wrote on X. “Thank you, Nick, for nominating your grandfather Perry Whited as your cancer hero. It was an honor to have him represented on my car. Looking forward to having Perry’s family with us at Bristol.”