By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer
MARTINSVILLE, VA – For the second time in two days, Mother Nature bested NASCAR as persistent rain forced the postponement of the Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 after 42 laps.
Denny Hamlin leads. The race will resume on Sunday at 4:00 p.m. ET on FS1. NASCAR attempted to dry the half-mile racing surface with the Toyota Air Titans before a downpour erased their progress.
Only one caution had taken place. Contact between Rick Ware Racing teammates Cody Ware and James Davison sent the No. 15 Jacob Companies Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE spinning into the outside wall off turn four.
Following post-race technical inspection, Daniel Suarez’s No. 99 Camping World Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was scheduled to start 11th, however it was found to have ballast in the jackpost. Both Suarez and his Trackhouse Racing team were docked 10 driver and owner points. Crew chief Travis Mack was ejected from Martinsville. Jose-Blasco Figueroa will serve as the interim crew chief. Suarez will drop to the rear prior to the start of the 500-lap race at Martinsville.
As a result of the points penalty, Suarez drops from 20th in the points standings to 21st. He is now 38-points behind the Playoff cutoff, currently held by Alex Bowman.
Also dropping to the rear at the start due to multiple inspection failures are Justin Haley, Corey LaJoie, and James Davison.
13th-place starter Tyler Reddick dropped to the rear in his No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE due to unapproved adjustments.
On Friday, the conclusion of the NASCAR Xfinity Series race was postponed due to rain. Brandon Jones currently leads that race in his No. 19 Toyota Camry after 91 laps with Josh Berry second. The Xfinity race will continue on Sunday at 12:00 p.m. ET on FS1.
Feature Photo Credit: NKP / NKP Photo