Joey Coulter Earns Sixth-Place Finish at Historic Rockingham Speedway

4/16/2012

Joey Coulter and the No. 22 STRUTMASTERS.COM Chevrolet team finished sixth in the inaugural running of the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 200 at Rockingham Speedway on Sunday afternoon. Coulter started the 200-lap affair from the 17th position and quickly began his trek into the top 10. By lap 45, Coulter had driven the black and white Chevrolet Silverado into the 10th position while battling a tight condition that developed throughout the first part of the run. Over the course of two pit stops, under yellow-flag conditions, crew chief Harold Holly called the 2011 Sunoco Rookie of the Year to pit road for fresh Goodyear tires, fuel and chassis adjustments to combat the handling issue. With fewer than 50 laps remaining in the event, Coulter informed the Holly-led team the No. 22 Chevrolet had switched to the loose side and began losing grip. Under a late-race caution, Coulter brought his No. 22 Chevrolet Silverado down pit road for another round of adjustments. Restarting seventh for the lap-180 green flag, Coulter was able to gain an additional position and post a sixth-place. Coulter's finish catapulted him from 24th to 12th in the driver's championship point standings, 43 markers from the leader.

Start -17 Finish - 6 Laps Led - 0 Points - 12

JOEY COULTER QUOTE:
"We struggled with the handling of the No. 22 STRUTMASTERS.COM Chevrolet throughout most of the race. Rockingham (Speedway) is a fun track. I wish we could have gotten a top-five finish, but I'm proud of the guys for working hard on the truck all day and finishing sixth. It was a great points day for us. We gained 12 spots with this top-10 finish."