This 4th of July at Irwindale Speedway, Patison Racing debuted their #17 Jim Beam, Lucas Oil Ford Fusion NASCAR Grand National West car. 34 teams in all showed up for the 200 lap event and as usual qualifying was extremely tight. After having to switch out an expired fuel cell and some other minor changes to get the car through tech, Patison made it out for the last half of the final practice session and only had a few laps to get a feel for qualifying. Luckily the #17 had tested the previous week so they decided to revert back to that set-up for their qualifying effort.
The changes improved the car but it was still lacking bite off the corner, Patison qualified almost three tenths of a second of the pole and would line up 14th for the start of the 30 car main event. The first 30 laps of the race Patison stayed out of trouble and got comfortable in the car, he lost a couple positions early, falling back to 16th. From lap 40 on, Patison and his Jim Beam ride were on the move.
He found a line that worked well and started picking off the competition. With some good maneuvering and the help of a couple caution flags he was up to 4th place at the 100 lap mark. During the 10 minute competition break that ensued, crew chief Steve Teets made the call for a slight air pressure change but no chassis adjustments. When the green flag flew on lap 105 the #17 was just as fast as it had been prior to the break. Ten laps later an aggressive Brett Thompson was using Patison’s car to help get off the corner, smoke poured out the back as the two cars ran side by side for several laps. Eventually something had to give and the 61 car of Thompson went spinning down the track. Patison checked up to avoid being collected but was hit from behind and was also sent spinning.
On lap 130 Patison restarted in the 20th position but was determined to get the spots back. Patison charged hard during the final laps, at one time going 4 wide to make a pass at the bottom of the track. In the end Patison was able to climb back into 4th place but didn’t have enough car left to challenge the leaders. “I had a ton of fun and I think it was a strong start for our new team. I really want to thank Jim Beam, Lucas Oil and Imagine This for making this possible and I can’t wait for our nest race!”
Patison would like to thank all of his sponsors for their continued support. Lucas Oil, Jim Beam, K&N Filters, Imagine This Promotions, Idiaz Label, Expect-A-Lot Graphics and No Mess Applicators.
