Gragson Sweeps NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Doubleheader Races at the Utah Motorsports Campus
- 20 Sept 2016
Noah Gragson swept the K&N Pro Series West doubleheader at the Utah Motorsports Campus and returned to victory circle for the first time since June. “It feels good to sweep the weekend,” Gragson said. “This is what we needed. Heading off to the next race, we got a road course in the East Series. I’m just really pumped up right now.” Gragson, one of the NASCAR Next drivers, won the first race after leading the last 10 laps of the Utah 110 presented by Ken Garff Volvo. He won the second race taking the lead on the last lap of the race. “This is pure, never give up attitude,” Gragson said. “We really need this as a team. I am just so pumped up for all my guys, they worked real hard for this.”
In the first race, Ryan Partridge won the pole and led the first 22 laps of the K&N Pro Series West race. Rookie Todd Gilliland, the leader in the K&N Pro Series West standings, passed Partridge on lap 23 and was out front for three laps. Gracin Raz was third, followed by Julia Landauer in fourth and Riley Herbst in fifth. Gragson took the lead from Gilliland on lap 27 and won the race by 1.086 seconds. It was Gragson’s fourth win of his K&N Pro Series career. He won the K&N Pro Series East race at Stafford Motor Speedway in Connecticut in June.
“Made my way into second chasing the 16 car (Gilliland),” Gragson said. “He made a mistake down in turn 1 with probably 11 or 10 to go. I took away the lead and I think that was the game-changer in the race. That’s what changed everything. Got some momentum on our side just being the leader. He really burned his stuff up there trying to run me down. He’d get close and then blow the corner, get close again and blow the corner.” Gilliland said his inexperience on road courses mixed with his aggressive strategy to catch Gragson cost him in the race. “It’s my first road course. It’s no excuse,” Gilliland said. “I kind of overdrove it, kind of got off track. I let the 7 (Gragson) pass me. I got back to him and I overdrove it again and let him get away.”
In the second race in Utah, Partridge won the pole again, his fourth of the season. This time he was out front for five laps before Gilliland, who started on the front row, passed him. Gilliland and Herbst battled for the lead over the next 30 laps before Gragson passed both of them on the final lap. “I just ran my race. Stayed focused, stayed positive,” Gragson said. “That’s really all I could do. Had a really good car, just one race on those tires. I’m really pumped up for my team, two in a row this weekend.” Gragson won the second race with a 3.809-second margin of victory over Gilliland. Partridge was third, followed by Herbst in fourth and Todd Souza in fifth.
“I thought I put my team back in a hole, messed up on a restart about halfway through running fifth,” Gragson said. “I was feeling down, but my crew chief told me that we were still in this thing, just really happy for these guys. Made my way back up and kept fighting till the end.” Gilliland has a 13-point lead over Partridge in the K&N Pro Series West standings with two races to go. Gragson is 37 points behind Gilliland and in third place. “It feels good,” Gragson said. “This is what we needed momentum wise. The guys worked really hard for it.” The next K&N Pro Series West race is at Meridian Speedway in Idaho on Sept. 24. |
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