Veekay Finishes Top 10 And Gains 11 Spots In Bommarito Automotive Group 500

Rinus VeeKay – No. 18 askROI, Dale Coyne Racing Honda
Started the race in P18 and moved up to P16 by the end of the opening lap.

Took advantage of the Lap 47 yellow flag to pit from 18th, exiting pit lane in 15th after gaining 3 spots thanks to the Dale Coyne Racing crew.

Extended his second stint longer than most of the field, reaching as high as 3rd before pitting on Lap 104.

When the Lap 130 caution came out, he was in P13. After pit stops, he gained another spot to P12.

Staying out long again and briefly taking the race lead before pitting on Lap 194 just one lap before a caution that would have positioned him as the leader Veekay exited the pits in p8.

Restarting in P8 following the yellow and, after some intense racing and slight contact with another driver, took a conservative approach and only lost one position, despite the contact and damage.

Pitted from P2 on Lap 240 giving him 20 laps to attack with fresh tires and gain track position.

Using the advantage of low fuel and new tires to pass Alex Palou and nearly overtake Conor Daly on the closing laps.

Finished the race in P7, an 11 spot gain overall and putting VeeKay top 15 in the points standings.

Post-Race Quote
“We had a good race car, the car really came to us as it got colder it just got better and better, we saved the best for last I'm really happy with the handling and how we progressed as a team this weekend. Had some pretty crazy racign at the end, almost crashed the car but we didnt, and even passed 2 cars after. Overall just a great day. As always huge thanks to askROI and Honda for making everything we do here possible.”

Jacob Abel – No. 51 Abel Construction, Dale Coyne Racing Honda
Starting in P27 and took advantage of the Lap 4 yellow to pit for fuel only.

Moving up to P24 and using the Lap 47 yellow to take the wave-around and return to the lead lap, while also pitting for more fuel and tires.

Reached P10 before pitting on Lap 103, reporting understeer early in the race but feeling good with the car overall.

Working up to P18 before pitting again under yellow on Lap 141 a lap before the wave around took affect Abel remained a lap down, running P19.

Pitting from P22 on Lap 192 for tires and full fuel just before the lap 195 caution.

Taking the caution as another opportunity to top off with fuel, giving the rookie driver more flexibility on the remaining strategy.

Climbing to P16 before making a final stop on Lap 252 for tires and fuel.

Finished in P21, a 6-position improvement from his starting place.

Post-Race Quote
“Another frustrating day today, we had a great car, I could pass and was moving up the field from where we started, but we missed an opportunity to wave around and that cost us the chance at a better finish. We will get better and learn, all we can do is look forward. We have had good cars these past 2 weeks, now we need to get the results to show it.”