FORT WORTH, Texas (Nov. 6, 2011) – Nelson Piquet Jr. and the No. 8 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) team made their way to Texas Motor Speedway with the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for the WinStar World Casino 350K. Piquet Jr. started the race from the seventh position and ran within the top 15 for the majority of the 147-lap event before crossing the finish line fourth.
As the field roared to life during the chilly autumn night, Piquet Jr. patiently worked his way toward the front, moving into the top five by lap seven. The rookie driver informed his team that the No. 8 truck was loose in the turns, as he slid back to sixth when the first caution waved on lap 15 for a two-truck incident in turn two. Crew chief Jeff Hensley called his driver to pit road for the crew to make a chassis adjustment, bolt on four tires and fill the truck with fuel. The quick stop positioned Piquet Jr. in the fourth spot for the lap 20 restart.
Just as quickly as the field came up to full speed, it was slowed for the night’s second caution on lap 22 for fluid on the track. After visiting pit road during the first caution, the team opted to remain on track to restart the race on lap 26 from the third spot.
During the restart, the Brazilian native was shuffled back to the fifth position, but within two laps was able to work his way up to fourth. Piquet Jr. settled into position and sailed around the 1.5-mile track until lap 34 when the caution flag waved for a third time during the event for a single-truck spin in turn four. Hensley directed his driver to pit road for four tires and fuel during the caution. The crew experienced difficulties with the left-front tire during the stop, costing the team valuable time on pit road. During the stop, NASCAR informed the crew that the No. 8 truck had entered pit road too fast and would be penalized by restarting the race from tail end of the longest line, placing them in the 28th position. Knowing they would not lose any additional positions, Hensley called his driver back on to pit road to for the crew to top the truck off with fuel before the restart on lap 37.
Piquet Jr. immediately set his sights toward the front of the field during the restart and began picking off trucks one-by-one taking over the 21st position by lap 41. The driver had worked his way back into 15th by lap 50 when he alerted his crew that the No. 8 Chevrolet was too loose. The team decided to visit pit road when the fourth caution of the night fell after a multi-truck accident erupted in turn two on lap 57. Piquet Jr. wheeled the truck down pit road for a quick chassis adjustment and fuel, placing the No. 8 machine in the fifth position when the field returned to green-flag racing on lap 63.
Back under green, the loose-handling condition persisted and Piquet Jr. slid back in the pack, falling to 14th by lap 87. The No. 8 machine remained in the top 15 until the fifth caution waved on lap 99 for an accident in turn two. The team seized the opportunity to bring the truck down pit road for a stop that included four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. Piquet Jr. made his way back on track to restart the race on lap 103 from the 13th position.
Piquet Jr. moved into the top 10 by lap 107 and continued moving forward settling into the seventh position by lap 130. The young driver maintained his seventh-place position until NASCAR officials displayed the caution flag for the sixth and final time on lap 142. During the caution Piquet Jr. brought his No. 8 Chevrolet to pit road one final time for a four-tire stop and returned to the track in the 15th position for the lap 146 restart.
With two laps remaining in the race, the driver muscled his way forward and moved into the top five on the final lap. Piquet Jr. crossed the finish line in the fourth position, which earned him honors as the highest finishing rookie driver of the race.
Piquet Jr. and the No. 8 team will travel to Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 18 for the Ford 200, the final Truck Series race of the season. To catch the action live, tune in to SPEED at 8:00 p.m. ET and listen to MRN at 7:45 p.m. ET.
###