Rookie Driver Places 15th During NCWTS’ Visit to the Midwestern State
NEWTON, Iowa (June 20, 2015) – Ray Black Jr. came out of Iowa Speedway with a solid 15th place finish after a hard-fought debut at the 7/8-mile track. The driver of the No. 07 ScubaLife.com Chevrolet had to battle for every position he got during the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series’ (NCWTS) American Ethanol 200 in order to secure his fifth Top-15 finish of the season.
Black’s day at Iowa Speedway had its ups and downs, as the driver had almost identical spins in both practice and the opening laps of the race, but he managed to make incredible saves both times to prevent his Chevy Silverado from receiving any damage other than some flat-spotted tires.
“That was just one of those racing incidents. We were racing hard and that will just happen sometimes,” said Black. “The team recovered from it well, and we made the right adjustments to prevent it from happening again. We were chasing the truck’s handling all night. It was free and then tightened way up on us at the end, so it was a battle tonight.”
After settling back down into the race, Black focused on fighting his way back inside the Top-20. He was successful in his pursuit after finding his groove at the track and almost raced his way into the Top-10 before finishing in 15th place. Despite the roller coaster of the night, Black had nothing but praise for the Midwestern track.
“Iowa is a fun place! I really like the track, especially how bumpy and fast it is. It’s a blast to drive and race on,” he said. “Plus we brought the truck home in one piece and got another Top-15 out of the night! Really a solid race for Team Scuba.”
With this finish, Black now has an average finishing position of 13.8 in the last four races of the season. While he remains in 11th place in the NCWTS championship standings, Black stays within striking distance of 10th place driver, Ben Kennedy.
Despite having a couple of off-weeks coming up, Black will still find himself at a racetrack. The rookie driver plans to compete in a late model race at Auburndale Speedway in Winter Haven, Florida before returning to NCWTS action at Kentucky Speedway on Thursday, July 9.
