Solid Weekend in New England Ends Abruptly for Blake Koch

Loudon, N.H. (July 17, 2016)- Kicking off his weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway posting the 15th and fifth fastest times in both of Friday’s NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) practice sessions, Blake Koch continued the trend qualifying a track-best 11th for Saturday’s Auto Lotto 200.

Settling into the top-15 once the initial green flag dropped on the 200-lap event, Koch radioed in, just 20 laps into the green-flag run, that his No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection™ Chevrolet Camaro was “plowing tight” and that he needed “a bit more forward drive.”

Able to maintain his track position despite fighting an ill-handling race car, Koch was able to come to pit road on lap 52 when the first yellow flag of the race was displayed. Coming to the attention of his Kaulig Racing™ team, crew chief Chris Rice made the call for four tires, fuel and adjustments to help better Koch’s corner exit.

Having a stellar restart when green-flag racing resumed on lap 56, Koch began knocking on the door of the top-10. In a tight four-car battle for the 12th-positon, Koch narrowly avoided a spin in front of him, drawing the second caution of the race on lap 66.

Trying to maintain track position, Rice elected to keep Koch on the track, allowing him to restart 13th. Still maintaining a position within the top-15, Koch once again avoided danger when the No. 3 spun at the front of the field, on lap 77, drawing another caution period.

Making his way down pit road under yellow, Koch gets four tires, fuel and adjustments to continue helping improve his Chevrolet Camaro. However, just as the field was lining up to go back green, Koch radioed in that he felt a severe vibration. Returning to pit road immediately, the Kaulig Racing™ team gave the LeafFilter Gutter Protection™ machine a quick glance over and sent Koch back on his way without losing a lap to the leaders.

Despite still battling the vibration once the Auto Lotto 200 went back green, Koch was able to hold on to his position until the caution came out again, this time just before the halfway mark, on lap 95. In an effort to earn back lost track position, Rice made the call for Koch to not pit with the leaders.

Restarting fourth, Koch battled amongst the leaders for a few circuits before eventually settling into the 11th position when competitors with fresher tires cycled to the front of the field. Continuing to maintain that position, Koch hit pit road from 11th-place for his final green flag pit stop of the race, on lap 158, for four tires and fuel.

However, as soon as Koch left pit road and made his way back on track, smoke began billowing out from the No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection™ Chevrolet Camaro. Being pushed behind the wall on lap 159 for a broken transmission, Koch’s day at New Hampshire Motor Speedway ended with a 32nd-place finish.

Quote:
“We had a really good car and I just hate it for my guys. They worked so hard to give me a fast car and put me in the position I was in to run up front. Obviously it’s not the results we wanted but there’s nothing we can do about it. We’ll just rebound at Indianapolis Motor Speedway next weekend.”

Notes:
•          Blake Koch was 15th and fifth in the two NXS practice sessions Friday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
•          Koch qualified a track-best 11th Saturday afternoon, and despite running solidly within the top-15, was relinquished to a 32nd-place finish at the 1-mile oval Saturdaydue to transmission issues.
•          The Kaulig Racing™ driver maintained his position in the 2016 NXS driver point standings, 12th, after the 17th race of the season, only 197 points behind leader Daniel Suarez, and still inside the Chase cutoff point.
•          Kyle Busch won the Auto Lotto 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway followed by Erik Jones (second), Brad Keselowski (third), Daniel Suarez (fourth) and Austin Dillon (fifth).
•          Up next: Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sat., July 23

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About Kaulig Racing™:
Kaulig Racing™ is a full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series team, owned by president and owner of LeafFilter Gutter Protection™, Matt Kaulig. Blake Koch, driver of the No. 11 Kaulig Racing™ entry, has more than 145 starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Kaulig Racing™ currently has partnerships with some of America’s leading companies across a wide range of industries such as LeafFilter Gutter Protection™, Celsius, Salt Life and AQUAhydrate. To learn more about the team, visit Kaulig Racing™.