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ESR & Will Gallaher Race Report -- Engine Failure Relegates Gallaher To A 24th-Place Finish At Tri-County
Will Gallaher finished 24th at Tri-County (N.C.) Motor Speedway on Saturday night after having to retire from the event early due to motor problems. Despite suffering some body damage early in the race, the rookie driver had a good set up and raced into the top 15 when his motor started to lose power and ultimately ended the team's evening just past the halfway point in the Alpha Energy Solutions 150.
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Gallaher returned to Tri-County Motor Speedway with the No. 6 Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR) team for his second UARA-STARS Series race at the 4/10-mile speedway. With a test session on Friday night and two practices on Saturday morning, the team focused on their setup and getting their Chevrolet to rotate through the corners. Gallaher recorded the 19th- and 13th-fastest lap during Saturday's two practice sessions, and went on to post a 16.748-second lap during time trials to secure the 20th starting position.
With his sights set on the top-15, Gallaher immediately got up on the wheel when the green flag waved and began picking up positions. Around lap 30, Gallaher was racing hard when another competitor made contact with the left rear quarter panel of the No. 6 machine coming off turn four. Gallaher held on to his Chevrolet as they two continued to make contact coming down the front straightaway and was able to avoid spinning. Despite body damage, Gallaher was able to continue racing and the No. 6 ESR team patiently waited for a caution to repair their machine.
The UARA-STARS Series' 150-lap races force teams to work their motors as hard as they can as the engines turn a lot of horsepower, and Saturday night's Alpha Energy Solutions 150 was no exception. Around lap 50, Gallaher noticed that his engine started to sound amiss. As laps passed by, the engine's power started to fall off, and by around lap 85 Gallaher elected to bring his car into the garage knowing that the team was out of contention for a win. By the end of the night, Gallaher and the No. 6 ESR team were credited with the 24th-place finishing position.
"We had a really strong car in race trim all weekend," commented Gallaher. "The local track guys definitely beat us in qualifying, but we were confident that we could work our way to the front as the race unfolded. Unfortunately, we suffered engine issues early and the team and I decided to cut our losses and retire before causing any more damage. It's disappointing, but we will definitely rebound at my favorite track, Rockingham Speedway, in a couple weeks."
Gallaher will be back in the No. 6 ESR Chevrolet for the UARA-STARS season finale at Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway on Saturday, Nov. 3. The weekend will kick off with practice and qualifying for all three divisions followed by a pit party/autograph session on the track's front stretch on Friday, Nov. 2. Saturday's schedule begins with driver introductions for the UARA-STARS Series at 11:30 a.m. followed by the series' 75-lap season finale. Next, the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will have 100-lap race, followed by a 75-lap race for the Kimmel Street Stock Series. Grandstand admission is free for Friday's events, and tickets start at just $20 for Saturday's races. Tickets for kids 12 and under are half-price.
PaddockTalk Perspective
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