Beating And Banging Still Results In Top 10 For Fultz
JCR3 Team Finishes Ninth At Hickory Motor Speedway
Hickory Motor Speedway is not for the fainted-hearted racecar drivers. The tight, bullring track is rough and beating and banging in the norm.
Jeff Fultz had went all year long and put minimal scratches and dents on his #54 C&C Boilers Pro Cup ride. After Hickory on Saturday night though, the body man will be hard at work, because Fultz’s #54 came out looking more like a demolition derby car en route to his ninth-place finish at Hickory in the Lowes Foods 250.
“We just struggled when we unloaded,” said Fultz, a former NASCAR All Pro Series champion. “It is the same car we had at (Myrtle) Beach, so we know it is a good car. We just really struggled here all day. We qualified really bad because we made some drastic changes. I probably cost us a tenth there, which would have been a lot of starting spots this field is so close.”
Fultz made the field as the last car in on time, putting him 28th in the starting field. From there, Fultz slowly began making his way toward the front of the field. It was not an easy road toward the front of the pack though.
“We started passing cars and the plug wire burnt off,” said Fultz. “We spent a lot of time on pit road getting that fixed and started passing more cars racing with just seven
Fultz got loose during his qualifying attempt, resulting in a 28th-place starting spot.
cylinders. We got that fixed, but that set of tires was pretty beat down from over running the car with a hurt motor. We knew the car was good though because we were running better times than a leader for a while trying to come up through the pack.
"The lapped cars are tough. Some guys out there just run in there and door you. That’s fine. That is what you have to do when you are in the back of the back. We did it to some. When you get to some lapped cars, you just have to move them out of the way. I hate doing that, but you don’t have any time to waste in the back.
“It’s too bad because we didn’t but a scratch on the car all year long and now, this thing is beat down both sides.”
At the end of the night, Fultz found himself in ninth.
“A ninth-place is a good night for these guys, especially after the week we went through after the last race. We can do this thought and we know it. Gary (Crooks) did a great job as crew chief. He and Jon worked real well together and kept me in check.”
Fultz will return to action on Saturday night, July 22 when the Pro Cup Series heads to Southern National Raceway Park. That race is set for a 7:30 pm start.
