Sunday, it worked. One strategy for cars not running inside the top 10 is to stay out as long as possible during green flag stops hoping for a caution. It usually results in little more than some hope and maybe credit for a lap or two led.
It resulted in a top 10 finish for Daniel Hemric at Dover.
Hemric stayed out during a round of green flag stops and was leading when caution came out on lap 332 for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. who lost a tire and slammed the inside wall on the backstretch.
He was able to pit among the leaders and came out sixth. From there he was able to hang on and score his second consecutive top 10 finish, ninth.
“It was a long day,” Hemric said. “We gave up a lot of track position early. Just probably got us too loose, in general, in practice going into the race with not really knowing what to expect out of this car. We fell back and were kind of stuck back there. The team made a great call to just keep us in the game. We stayed out a little longer there on that last green-flag cycle stop – it was kind of like an early Christmas present to us. It got us back on the lead lap.”
The ninth place matched his finish a week prior at Talladega. He now has two top 10s on the season.
“It was just really rewarding for all of us on the No. 31 Poppy Banky Chevy team to put us inside the top-10 and be able to run there. We know our pace was there, it’s just a matter of getting track position. That’s the name of the game here. Overall, I’m proud of everyone on the No. 31 Poppy Bank Chevy team.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.