By: Zach Catanzareti, Staff Writer
Jamie McMurray had a solid run in Saturday’s rain-punished XFINITY Series race at ISM Raceway.
Bringing home a top-five result for Chip Ganassi Racing, the run was particularly special due to the fact the 200-mile event was McMurray’s first in the series in five years, dating back to Richmond in September of 2013.
In the return race, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series veteran rolled off from the sixth spot and maintained a top-10 position throughout the DC Solar 200. And though the circuit was sprayed with rain twice (causing two red flags on the day), McMurray continued without significant woes.
“It was a really good day,” McMurray said. “I wasn’t very good on the restarts; our car was super loose. The long green-flag runs worked in our favor because we weren’t good on the short runs.”
Crossing the finish line fifth, it was also the 41-year-old’s first top-five XFINITY finish since 2010 when he last scored victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The run comes in a car that went to Victory Lane just a week ago with Kyle Larson.
“We got a little behind on strategy with the rain,” he continued. “But overall, a really good day for our team.”
In his 188th series start, there are two more races on McMurray’s 2018 calendar to come. Though he’s unsure of where those races will be run, he does know that a double-duty weekend is one he can still handle.
“It’s a busy weekend, a lot going on, but I’ve really enjoyed it so far,” he said.
McMurray lines up eighth for Sunday’s Ticket Guardian 500 in the Cup Series.