Dylan Lupton NASCAR XFINITY Series Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Practice Report

Dylan Lupton NASCAR XFINITY Series Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Practice Report

Topics: Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200, Dylan Lupton

Dylan Lupton NASCAR XFINITY Series Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Practice Report

Chris Knight
Knight Motorsports Management
August 14, 2015

NASCAR XFINITY Series, Third Annual Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200
Event No. 21, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio
First And Final Practice Notes And Quotes
Friday, August 14, 2015

Still refreshed off his career-best NASCAR XFINITY Series finish two weeks ago at Iowa Speedway, Dylan Lupton has approached his first XFINITY road-course race of the season with optimism.

Coming off a superb fourth-place finish at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in his NASCAR K&N Pro Series East debut, Lupton carried the momentum from one road course to another, the 2.25-mile track of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, site of two NASCAR XFINITY Series practices Friday afternoon.

Driving the No. 25 Athenian Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro for Tony Townley, Lupton struggled to get the grip that he needed to allow him to transition the balance through the corners and elevation changes. Describing to crew chief Mike Ford that he felt his car was over-rotating at certain points of the track, Ford adjusted the setup.

Adapting to the setup, Lupton posted a time that timed in a respectable 18th.

A quick turn-around to the final practice session, Lupton battled both a tight and loose No. 25 Zaxby’s Chevrolet Camaro. While the handling wasn’t perfect, Lupton chimed in his quickest lap overall at the Ohio-based track maneuvering around the course in 87.139 seconds or 93.285 miles per hour.

Still adjusting the handling of his race car, Lupton with fresh tires and a slew of changes ready to be tested, another car experienced mechanical issues, dropping fluid on the race track and prematurely ending the final practice session just as Lupton took to the course.

Lupton ended the session 24th quickest overall, but their effort was not a clear indicator of how fast of a car that Ford and the Athenian Motorsports brought their rookie driver.

Lupton, a graduate of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will make his fifth XFINITY Series start driving the No. 25 Zaxby’s Chevrolet Camaro for Athenian Motorsports.

In his previous road course racing experience, including the Aug. 7 running of the Bully Hill Vineyards 125 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.), the 21-year-old has failed to finish outside the top-10 in five other NASCAR K&N Pro Series West road course starts, including a second-place finish last year at Miller Motorsports Park.

The UNCC-Charlotte student made his most recent start at Iowa Speedway on August 1, rallying from a late-race spin to a lead-lap 17th place finish. In March, the California made his XFINITY debut at Phoenix (Ariz.) International, finishing 19th after starting 23rd.

DYLAN LUPTON, NO. 25 ZAXBY’S CHEVROLET CAMARO

Team: Athenian Motorsports

First Practice Time: 87.420 seconds at 92.986 miles per hour.

First Practice Position: 18th

Fastest Lap: Ninth

Number of Laps Completed: 14

Final Practice Time: 87.139 seconds or 93.285 miles per hour.

Final Practice Position: 24th

Fastest Lap: 11th

Number of Laps Completed: 17

Qualifying Draw: 23 / 40

“The first practice we were alright, it seemed like we were a little over tuned than we wanted to be. Still, the car had some speed and we were able to show that with a solid lap time. During the break, we made some more changes, but the car reacted a little different than what we hoped. The car was tight on entry and through the middle, but made it snappy loose on exit. That hurt the tires during the second practice.

“Despite all of that, I felt like we were on to something towards the end of practice and we were out on new tires and all, when the session was called early for fluid on the track. Our lap time was a little deceptive from what I think we’ll be able to produce in qualifying and the race.

“Mike (Ford, crew chief) has some good ideas and I look forward to seeing how they turn out Saturday. I think we easily have a top-15 car and if everything falls our way, I think we’ll be capable of putting together our first top-10 finish of the season.”

The Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 (75 laps / 169.35 miles) is the 21st of 34 events on the 2015 NASCAR XFINITY Series schedule. Qualifying is set for race day, Saturday, August 15 scheduled to lift off at 11:15 a.m. The 40-car starting field will take the green flag shortly after 3:30 p.m. with live coverage on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN), the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Satellite Radio, Channel 90. All times are local.

Fast Links:

Driver: Dylan Lupton on Twitter @LuptonDylan or visit LuptonRacing.com.

Team: Follow Athenian Motorsports on Twitter @AthenianMotors.

Marketing Partner: Zaxby’s: Zaxbys.com.

Sanction: NASCAR XFINITY Series: NASCAR.com.

About Zaxby’s Racing:

Zaxby’s has been a fixture in NASCAR since 2007 with driver John Wes Townley. In July 2014, Zaxby’s joined forces with Athenian Motorsports. AMS will operate out of a new, state-of-the-art, 43,000 square foot facility in Concord, N.C. in 2015. The team will carry the Zaxby’s colors as it fields full-time entries in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

About Zaxby’s:

An alternative to fast food, Zaxby’s offers its guests prepared-at-order Chicken Fingerz, Traditional or Boneless Wings, sandwiches, Zalads and Zappetizers, along with a variety of nine sauces ranging from Wimpy and Tongue Torch to Nuclear and Insane. Childhood friends Zach McLeroy and Tony Townley hatched the Athens, Ga.-based chain in 1990 to provide a fun, relaxing atmosphere that would keep guests coming back for more. The company ranked number seven in the 2012 Top 10 Excellent Large Fast-Food Chains With 500 or More U.S. Units Quick-Track study published by Sandelman & Associates.

The chain also ranked number five in the nation for total sales and number one in the chicken segment in the 2012 Top 150 Fast-Casual Chain Restaurant Report published by Technomic. In honor of the thousands of children the restaurant chain serves every year, Zaxby’s is a proud supporter of Make-A-Wish. The company operates more than 595 locations in 13 states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

PHOTO CREDIT: Dylan Lupton, driver of the No. 25 Zaxby’s Chevrolet Camaro in the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) for Athenian Motorsports. (Photo Credit: Dennis Michelson for Lupton Racing).

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