Long loose day out in Vegas

AJ Allmendinger experienced some tough luck out west this weekend as he fought through a tough weekend from start to finish in the No. 43 Valvoline Ford at Las Vegas Speedway in the Shelby American 500.


A motor going in practice on Friday helped to put the team on the back foot right from the start, and rain on Saturday meant that there just wasn't much time to get the No. 43 dialed in. Some drastic weather changes ahead of Sunday's green flag didn't make the assignment any easier.


Starting from 40th, AJ had a loose car to start the day on the 1.5-mile track, and despite change after change, the Valvoline Ford remained a handful all day long. But keeping it off the wall at least paid off with some forward progress as AJ stayed on the lead lap until the race hit the halfway mark. The long green flag runs didn't help as the disadvantage was stretched through lap after lap.


The 25th place finish puts AJ 27th in the points, tied with Montoya after three rounds. AJ tweeted thanks to his fans after the race, and is determined to turn things around next weekend as NASCAR heads to Atlanta for the Kobalt Tools 500.