Cole Custer Makes Final Turn Pass On Tyler Reddick At Pocono To Win In Overtime

Cole Custer Makes Final Turn Pass On Tyler Reddick At Pocono To Win In Overtime

by June 1, 2019 0 comments

LONG POND, Pa. – Cole Custer passed Tyler Reddick in the final turn of Saturday’s Pocono Green 250 Recycled by J.P. Mascaro to win at Pocono Raceway.

On the final lap in NASCAR Overtime, Reddick led the field into Turn 3, but he got loose and slid up the track. Custer, who was right behind him in the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 00 FIMS Manufacturing Ford was able to take advantage of the slip up and make the race-winning pass to win his third race of the NASCAR Xfinity Series season.

“It was pretty unbelievable,” Custer said. “Tyler gave me a real run for my money there. I have no idea how he made it stick on that restart on the bottom passing me but he did. He was unbelievable on the brakes at the end. I was just able to kind of force a mistake a little bit trying to pack air on him. It was a fun end of the race. I wish I didn’t have to do it like that, but it probably made it exciting.”

Reddick came up just short of winning his third race in the last four weekends. The runner-up finish marked his 11th top-10 finish in 12 races this year.

“I heard that he (Custer) drove it in a little deep there, so I tried to really get it stopped and make sure that I covered the bottom,” said Reddick, driver of the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet. “We really just fought tight handling on the last half of this race in our Tame the Beast Camaro. We were just so good at the beginning of this race, I just don’t know what changed.”

Chase Briscoe finished in third, followed by Ryan Preece and Christopher Bell, who rebounded from a lap 18 spin. Rounding out the top-10 was Noah Gragson, Austin Cindric, Michael Annett, Justin Haley and Austin Dillon.

There were seven cautions for 26 laps on Saturday. The race came down to the wire as two late-race cautions completely changed the outlook of the race.

Custer was well on his way to winning the race until Cindric and Jeffrey Earnhardt made contact in Turn 2 with just five laps to go. Cindric made contact with Earnhardt’s left rear. Earnhardt spun, but he kept the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota out of the wall.

On the restart with three laps to go, Justin Allgaier spun in Turn 1. Ray Black II and Cindric were involved as well. The caution is what set the field up for a NASCAR Overtime finish.

Reddick now leads Bell in the standings by 76 points.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series will head to the Midwest and visit Michigan International Speedway on Saturday, June 8 for the LTi Printing 250. Live coverage will broadcast on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and the Motor Racing Network (MRN).

Photo Credit: Chris Trotman/Getty Images

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