Gateway / WWT Raceway Enjoy Illinois 300 NASCAR Practice Notes

Ryan Blaney – Ryan Blaney got out on the track right at the start of practice and logged fast lap times. Blaney had the best overall speed and was fast over short runs and long runs. The #12 team was said to be trying new setup things this weekend. Blaney said he had decent speed, but he would like to keep improving over a long run. In practice, Blaney had the best 10 lap average, ranked 2nd for both 15 and 20-lap averages and had the best 25-lap average. His 30-lap average ranked 6th.

Joey Logano – The #22 was fast in practice. Burton thought the #22 looked very competitive. Logano said practice was pretty good. He was good in terms of short run speed and long run speed. He also practiced running in lanes that others weren’t using. In practice, Logano had the 2nd best 10-lap average, the 6th best 20-lap average and ranked 2nd for 30-lap averages.

Christopher Bell – The #20 was strong in practice throughout a run. Bell was happy with his car. In practice, Bell had the best 15-lap average and the best 30-lap average.

Denny Hamlin – Denny Hamlin started practice with a 1-lap run and then came back to pit road. He didn’t like his brake pedal early in practice. When practice ended, Hamlin ranked as the 6th best for 15-lap averages, 5th for 25-lap averages and had the 3rd best 30-lap average.

Kyle Larson – Late in practice the #5 team told Larson that his pace is on par with the #12 and #20 teams. Larson said he had a good practice session. He thinks they are decent on speed. He was happy with his car. In practice he ranked 7th for 15-lap averages and 9th for 25-lap averages.