Handling Issues Hamper Matt Tifft and the Nexteer Team’s Run at Michigan International Speedway

“This race didn’t play out quite like we thought it was going to based on how practice went. Our No. 2 Nexteer Chevrolet Camaro was great during practice Friday, and I felt comfortable both in and out of the draft. Unfortunately on Saturday, much of the race was a single line and our race car was way too loose when someone came up behind me. That handling issue made us pit early off-sequence and lose some of the track position we had gained. Track position ended up being everything, and with the rain coming strategies varied. We had a shot at it when we stayed out for stage points and finished Stage 2 in the fourth position. If the rain had come then we would have been in good shape, but it didn’t and we didn’t have enough fuel to stay out. That put us farther back than we wanted, and we just had to gain as many positions as we could until the rain came. Congrats to everyone at RCR for getting back into Victory Lane this weekend. Hopefully, we’ll be in there ourselves soon.”

-Matt Tifft

Austin Dillon and the Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Team Return Richard Childress Racing to Victory Lane

“It’s always amazing to get back to Victory Lane. We’ve been working really hard at Richard Childress Racing to get back into the Winner’s Circle and as an organization, we really thought that if we could put Nick Harrison and myself together we could get there. It worked because this is only our second race together this year and here we are. The new package we ran this weekend worked. The fans had to love how tight we were all running together. It was definitely difficult to pass that lead guy. I thought it was fun. It reminded me of Go Kart racing back in the day. We knew we were taking a chance by not pitting and gambled that the rain would come. Luckily, it worked out for us this time. We put a lot of effort into this race and spent time in the simulator to make sure we had a car that could pass, which was key. I want to thank Johnny Morris and everyone at Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s for their support. They have been there with me since early in my career and I hope that I make them proud.”

-Austin Dillon

Daniel Hemric Ties Career-Best Finish with Second-Place Run at Michigan International Speedway in South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet

“I am proud of the effort and the strides our team made throughout the weekend in practice to make sure we had a really good-driving race car today. I’m proud of everyone on this No. 21 South Point Hotel & Casino team for giving me the opportunity to drive a fast race car. I just didn’t quite execute on my end to put this team in Victory Lane today. It’s a great day for RCR having a one-two finish with Austin winning the race. I’ll be thinking about the end of this race tonight as I debrief, but come Monday morning our focus shifts to next weekend’s race at Iowa Speedway. This organization has come a long way and it’s been a while since Richard Childress Racing has been to Victory Lane in the Xfinity Series. I’m happy for Austin, but I wish I was the one to deliver that win for Richard and everyone on this team.”

-Daniel Hemric