Taylor Gray wins at Pocono after race shortened by darkness
LONG POND, Pa. – The General Tire Delivers 200 for the ARCA Menards Series at Pocono Raceway was shortened due to darkness on Friday night (July 22nd 2022) after both rain and a large crash around halfway marred the event.
Early in the event, Taylor Gray was a force to be reckoned with, but Nick Sanchez kept it close, eventually taking the lead at lap 27. Gray would lose a lap during the modified pit stops for too slow of a pit stop due to an issue with the fuel can, but he was able to get a wave around back to the lead lap later in the event.
After a multi-car incident, the second competition caution was moved up due to the impending threat of darkness mixed with a lengthy cleanup just prior for a multi-car incident in the Tunnel Turn.
The decision allowed Gray to start in the lead ahead of the likes of Nick Sanchez, Brandon Jones and the points leader Rajah Caruth. That’s how they would finish as a final caution from a Jesse Love spin on lap 62.
“Definitely a pretty eventful one, Gray said post-race. “I was trying like hell to get back up there. I can’t thank everybody enough.”
The race was scheduled for 80 laps but with no lights around The Tricky Triangle, the race had to be called early. While it did rain heavily earlier in the day, the rain did not effect the scheduled start time of the event. The rain did, however, cancel qualifying for the event earlier in the day.
Caruth leaves Pocono maintaining the points lead after finishing in fourth. Sanchez does gain with the runner-up finish as the series heads to Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park next week for the 11th race of the season.
TOP 10 POCONO FINISHERS:
- Taylor Gray
- Nick Sanchez
- Brandon Jones
- Rajah Caruth
- Daniel Dye
- Connor Mosack
- Jake Finch
- Kris Wright
- Jason Kitzmiller
- Toni Breidinger
