Talladega II NXS Race Report
Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021
Race 28 of 33: Sparks 300
Track: Talladega Superspeedway
Buford’s Finish: 12th
Jade Buford drove to an impressive race in Saturday’s Sparks 300 at Talladega Superspeedway, drafting his way up inside the top 10 and avoiding multiple incidents to take the checkered flag in the 12th position. The finish was the No. 48 Big Machine Vodka Spiked Cooler team’s second top-12 effort of the season.
Buford rolled off the grid from the 26th position and only moved forward from there, racing with the main pack for much of the opening stage. The rookie driver took the green-and-white checkered flag to end Stage One in the 18thposition on lap 25. Under the stage-ending caution, Buford relayed to crew chief Patrick Donahue that his No. 48 Camaro was a little tight coming of the corner, so the team made a slight chassis adjustment during their pit stop for four tires and fuel.
Taking the green flag on lap 39 for the second stage in the 23rd position, Buford methodically began to work his way forward, utilizing the preferred high line. By lap 39, he advanced to 10th and was running single file with the lead pack. With racing getting dicey, the team made the smart call to drop back for the end of the stage to avoid getting caught up in any last-lap melee. Buford ended the stage in the 17th position.
The No. 48 team pit for fuel only during the stage-break and Buford lined up 10th for the start of the final stage. He continued to race with the main pack, utilizing multiple lanes to maintain his position towards the front. Buford avoided two major incidents in the final stage and was running in the 12th position when another caution came out with just 12 laps to go.
With the sun setting fast, the race was unable to get back under way and Buford was ultimately scored with a 12th-place finish.
Jade Buford, driver of the No. 48 Big Machine Vodka Spiked Coolers Chevrolet:
“It was a pretty good day for our Big Machine Racing team. To come home with a top-12 finish and our car still in one piece is a big feat at a superspeedway like Talladega. We finally have some momentum back on our side and I’m already looking forward to seeing what we can do next weekend at the Roval.”
Next Up:
The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval for the Drive for the Cure 250 on Saturday, Oct. 9. Tune in to NBC at 3 p.m. ET.