BRISTOL, Tenn. - Chad Finchum defended his home turf.
The Knoxville, Tennessee native rocketed away from defending race-winner Kyle Benjamin on the final restart with 10 laps left in Saturday’s Pitt Lite 125 at Bristol Motor Speedway to capture the checkered flag – his first NASCAR K&N Pro Series East victory in 13 career starts.
The 21-year-old took control on lap 14 and was able to defend the top-spot from a charging Benjamin throughout the race. The victory also marked the first win for second-year team, Martin-McClure Racing. The local team, owned by NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers Eric McClure and Hal Martin, announced earlier in the week their plans to race a partial K&N East schedule this season.
Benjamin finished second, followed by Kaz Grala, Justin Haley and Dillon Bassett.
Collin Cabre, Gracin Raz, Eddie MacDonald, Todd Gilliland and Riley Herbst rounded out the top 10.
Entering the race attempting to set a record with five consecutive K&N Pro Series victories to start his career, Gilliland started from the rear due to unapproved adjustments and could not fully recover. Fellow pre-contest favorite, 21 Means 21 Pole Award winner Harrison Burton, bowed out just before the halfway point due to engine trouble and finished 23rd.
Prior to his win, Finchum, 21, never finished higher than seventh, a result he achieved three times. He is scheduled to run three more K&N East races this season: Iowa (July 26), New Hampshire (July 16) and Dover (Sept. 30).
Although he expressed disappointment with his inability to catch Finchum for the win, Benjamin jumped Dawsonville, Georgia’s Spencer Davis for first in the K&N East standings. He leads the No. 41 FEVR Chevrolet driver by three points.
NASCAR K&N Pro Series East
Bristol Motor Speedway – Bristol, TN
Pitt Lite 125 – April 16, 2016
| Fin | Str | Car | Driver | Team | Laps | Points | B/Points | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 39 | Chad Finchum | Reynolds Wraps Toyota | 125 | 48 | 5 | Running |
| 2 | 3 | 40 | Kyle Benjamin | FEVR Chevrolet | 125 | 42 | Running | |
| 3 | 11 | 3 | Kaz Grala | NETTTS Toyota | 125 | 41 | Running | |
| 4 | 10 | 5 | Justin Haley | Braun Auto Chevrolet | 125 | 40 | Running | |
| 5 | 5 | 44 | Dillon Bassett | Bassett Gutters Ford | 125 | 39 | Running | |
| 6 | 7 | 2 | Collin Cabre | UTI/NTI Toyota | 125 | 38 | Running | |
| 7 | 18 | 27 | Gracin Raz | Montana Tech Ford | 125 | 37 | Running | |
| 8 | 26 | 71 | Eddie MacDonald | Grimm Construction Chevrolet | 125 | 36 | Running | |
| 9 | 8 | 16 | Todd Gilliland * | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | 125 | 35 | Running | |
| 10 | 20 | 19 | Riley Herbst * | NOS Energy Drink Toyota | 125 | 34 | Running | |
| 11 | 2 | 30 | Dominique Van Wieringen * | Durobyte/Joe’s Racing Products Ford | 125 | 33 | Running | |
| 12 | 14 | 55 | Noah Gragson | AlertID/Speed Vegas/Colliers Int’l Ford | 125 | 32 | Running | |
| 13 | 16 | 14 | Trey Hutchens | Hutchens Motorsports Chevrolet | 125 | 31 | Running | |
| 14 | 9 | 41 | Spencer Davis * | FEVR Chevrolet | 123 | 30 | Running | |
| 15 | 23 | 1 | Austin Theriault | Otics USA Toyota | 122 | 29 | Running | |
| 16 | 17 | 13 | Hunter Baize * | Bicycle Playing Cards/Pine Mountain Firewood | 121 | 28 | Engine | |
| 17 | 19 | 38 | Tyler Dippel * | East West Marine/TyCar Chevrolet | 118 | 27 | Running | |
| 18 | 24 | 6 | Ruben Garcia Jr. * | Special Smiles Pediatric Dentistry Toyota | 95 | 26 | Rear gear | |
| 19 | 6 | 4 | Ronnie Bassett Jr. | Bassett Gutters Ford | 92 | 25 | Running | |
| 20 | 27 | 9 | Christian Celaya | Clinica La Familia Ford | 91 | 24 | Running | |
| 21 | 13 | 75 | Caleb Holman | Food Country USA Chevrolet | 82 | 23 | Accident | |
| 22 | 12 | 42 | J.A. Junior Avila * | Autism Society of East Tenn. Toyota | 28 | 22 | Engine | |
| 23 | 1 | 12 | Harrison Burton * | DEX Imaging/Konica Minolta Toyota | 26 | 22 | 1 | Engine |
| 24 | 15 | 49 | John Holleman IV * | Midway Mobile Storage Ford | 25 | 20 | Engine | |
| 25 | 22 | 31 | Reid Lanpher * | Whelen/EqualizerHitch.com/FastwayTrailer.com | 10 | 19 | Accident | |
| 26 | 21 | 7 | Codie Rohrbaugh | Grant County Mulch Chevrolet | 9 | 18 | Accident | |
| 27 | 28 | 4 | Ali Kern * | Max Siegel, Inc. Toyota | 9 | 17 | Accident | |
| 28 | 29 | 77 | Clayton Green * | Royal Vista Inc. Toyota | 9 | 16 | Accident | |
| 29 | 25 | 2 | Sarah Cornett-Ching * | Dickies Toyota | 9 | 15 | Accident |
RACE STATISTICS
Fastest Qualifier: Harrison Burton *, Time: 15.71 Seconds, Speed: 122.139 mph
Time of Race: 0 hrs., 53 mins, 51 secs Average Speed: 74.234 mph Margin of Victory: .625 Seconds
Caution Flags: Laps 10-13 (7, 4, 02, 31,77 Turn 1&2- No FP); 26-31 (#49 Turn 4- FP #42 ); 72-76 (Break – FP #1); 83-89 (75 Frontstretch – FP #55);
111-114 (41 – FP # 55). 5 for 26 laps.
Lap Leaders: Harrison Burton * 1-13, Chad Finchum 14-125.
Total Laps Led: Chad Finchum 112, Harrison Burton * 13. 1 changes involving 2 drivers.
Top 10 Driver Points: Kyle Benjamin 164, Justin Haley 161, Spencer Davis * 155, Tyler Dippel * 147, Kaz Grala 145, Ronnie Bassett Jr. 141, Noah Gragson 139, Collin Cabre 126, Dominique Van Wieringen * 120, Austin Theriault 119
* – Denotes Sunoco Rookie of the year contender
http://accesswdun.com/article/2016/4/389121/finchum-flies-to-first-kn-pro-east-victory-at-bristol