Chandler Smith may have had his rookie stripes, but he raced like a veteran at Richmond Raceway. (Photo: Mitchell Richtmyre | The Podium Finish)
RICHMOND, Va. – Following a riveting NASCAR Xfinity Series victory last Saturday, Chandler Smith made the most of his NASCAR Cup Series debut last Sunday at Richmond Raceway.
Unlike the Daytona Speedweeks experiences for Smith and his No. 13 Quick Tie Products Chevrolet entry fielded by Kaulig Racing, this intended effort went much more smoothly. Despite the cancelation of last Saturday’s qualifying session due to inclement weather, Smith, who started in the 37th and last position, settled in quite nicely.
In the early going, Smith was mired toward the rear of the field, placing 30th in Stage 1 and 29th in Stage 2.
Of course, Smith, essentially a Cup rookie, understood that it would be a difficult but enjoyable debut.
“I just want to finish the Cup race, to be quite honest with you. I don’t have really any expectations,” Smith said following his victory in last Saturday’s ToyotaCare 250. “I have a general feel of what the Cup car felt like at Daytona that’s so different than here at Richmond.
“I’m just a blind squirrel. I don’t really have any expectations. I’m just really grateful to be racing on Sunday at Richmond with Kaulig Racing. Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice have given me this opportunity and it’s amazing. I’m going to go out there, perform, and see where it ends up.”
Smith understood the assignment when he made his Cup debut at Richmond last Sunday. (Photo: Trish McCormack | The Podium Finish)
Smith wound up having a much better result than his showings in Stages 1 and 2. Namely, Smith surged ahead of his Kaulig Racing teammates, AJ Allmendinger and Justin Haley, in the race’s final rundown, placing 17th and on the lead lap.
Refreshing after last Sunday’s race, Smith reflected on his respectable Cup debut.
“For the first half, three quarter of the day, we struggled pretty bad,” Smith said. “Just balance and dirty air from clean air, buffer and whatnot, (it) just wasn’t that great. And then we got our No. 13 Quick Tie Products, Chevy Camaro pretty tuned up there for then.
“I would have been fine with another 100 lap run because it felt like we were a top 15 car at that point and we progressively just kept getting better and better. So thankful for Matt Kaulig, Chris Rice, Quick Tie Products, everybody that believed in me and allowed me to come do this and look forward to more.”
Perhaps the lack of any practice and qualifying was a bit of a throwback for the Talking Rock, Georgia native, especially with his racing pedigree.
“Yeah, it was crazy. But my super late model racing background definitely helped me get acclimated pretty quick,” he said. “I’m a short track guy. I come from short track racing. This car drives somewhat similar to a super to an extent, so it wasn’t too awfully unfamiliar.”
Naturally, in spite of a competitive showing and result at Richmond, Smith realizes that he has not learned all there is to a Cup car.
“I’m still learning. I can’t answer that question. Just still building blocks, just trying to soak it in right now and process everything,” he said.
After placing 17th at Richmond, Smith knows there is more to learn with racing in the Cup Series. (Photo: Trish McCormack | The Podium Finish)
Although Smith will need to wait until Saturday, Apr. 15 (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1) for the next NASCAR Xfinity Series race, the Call 811.com Before You Dig 250, he does not dismiss the values and experiences of racing in Cup when it comes to takeaways with his full-time efforts in the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Xfinity ride.
“I mean, obviously reps are reps, so you know, racing with this elite of a field and whatnot, it’s definitely going to help going back and racing against the Saturday group. I can’t complain too much,” Smith said.
Editor’s Notes
Nathan Solomon contributed to this article directly on-site from Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia.
