NEWTON, Iowa. – “Short tracks, short tracks, short tracks.”
With those six words, you know that NASCAR XFINITY Series driver B.J. McLeod is amped as the series steers west towards Newton, Iowa, site of Sunday’s American Ethanol E15 250 at Iowa Speedway.
“I love short track racing, it’s my background,” said team owner and driver B.J. McLeod. “We’ve had some pretty good luck on the short tracks this season, so hopefully, we can continue that trend with a good finish on Sunday. We need it after the bad luck at Michigan.”
McLeod made his XFINITY Series debut at the 2.0-mile Michigan International Speedway and was poised for another solid finish for his No. 78 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Ford Mustang, but a mechanical failure late in the race sent the team to the garage and unable to finish the race.
Still, the team was encouraged with the performance in the Irish Hills and McLeod says he couldn’t be more satisfied with the direction of his Mooresville, North Carolina heading into the grueling summer stretch.
“I think it’s easy to notice the gains we’ve made on the track the last couple of weeks and that comes with a lot of hard work by the team,” added McLeod. “But, there’s more work to be done and we know that. If we can continue to make gradual improvements over the summer it will put us in a good position to make a charge for the end of the year.”
Staying focused on Iowa this weekend, McLeod will make his second start at the 0.875-mile oval and return to the site of XFINITY Series debut last May. While plagued by brake issues during the race, McLeod expects a much different outcome the second time around.
“I really enjoyed competing at Iowa,” sounded McLeod. “It’s a great venue, with the opportunity to not only race side-by-side, but race hard too. The track is a little bumpy, but that’s not a bad thing, it produces character and that leads to good racing. We had a top-20 finish the last time we were on a short track and I hope for a similar performance Sundayafternoon.”
Port Tobacco, Maryland native Timmy Hill will drive the No. 15 Rick Ware Racing / B.J. McLeod Motorsports Ford Mustang this weekend at Iowa Speedway. Hill has five prior starts at Iowa between the Camping World Truck and XFINITY Series respectively.
“Timmy is a great dude and he does a good job no matter who he drives for,” McLeod explained. “With his prior experience at Iowa, it’s nice to have him on our side.”
Veteran industry crew chief George (David) Ingram Jr. will call the shots for the No. 78 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Ford Mustang for the 14th race of the 2016 NASCAR XFINITY Series season.
For more on B.J. McLeod, please visit his official Facebook page, while also visiting the team’s new website at BJMcLeodMotorsports.com. Additionally, the team is growing their presence on Twitter, with the team’s new account @teamBJMcLeod. McLeod also utilizes his personal twitter too, @BJMcLeod78.
Marketing partnership opportunities are available for the No. 78 Ford Mustang for the remainder of the 2016 NASCAR XFINITY Series. Interested inquiries are encouraged to contactpr@bjmcleodmotorsports.com.
The American Ethanol E15 250 (250 laps / 218.75 miles) is the 14th of 33 NASCAR XFINITY Series on the 2016 schedule. XFINITY Series practice begins on Friday, June 17 from 3:30 p.m. – 4:55 p.m. A final practice has been etched in from 6:00 p.m. – 6:55 p.m. Qualifying is set for Saturday, June 18 beginning at 5:45 p.m. The 40-car field will take the green flag shortly after 12:30 p.m. the following day, Sunday, June 19 with live coverage on FOX Sports 1, the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Satellite Radio, Channel 90). All times are Central.
