Ty leads early session; brother Austin sets pace in final tune-up
RELATED: Practice 1 results | Practice 2 results
Austin Dillon locked down the top spot on the leaderboard Friday afternoon in final NASCAR XFINITY Series practice at Dover International Speedway, completing a brotherly sweep of the day's two practices with his brother, Ty.
Austin Dillon wheeled the Richard Childress Racing No. 33 Chevrolet to a fast lap of 154.261 mph in the 85-minute session on the 1-mile concrete track. The older Dillon prevailed last weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, registering his second XFINITY victory of the season.
Brendan Gaughan, a teammate to both Dillons in the Childress No. 62 Chevy, clinched the second-fastest lap with a speed of 154.195 mph. Rookies Daniel Suarez (153.932) and Darrell Wallace Jr. (153.702) completed the front four in final preparation for Saturday's Buckle Up 200 presented by Click It or Ticket (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM), with Sprint Cup regular Matt Kenseth closing out the top five.
Chris Buescher, the series' points leader, was eighth-fastest in the Roush Fenway Racing No. 60 Ford. Defending series champion Chase Elliott posted the 10th-fastest lap in the JR Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet.
Ty Dillon, who led Friday's opening practice, was 14th-fastest in final practice in the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevy. He enters Saturday's 200-miler second in the standings, just four points behind Buescher after 11 of 33 races this season.
Carl Long, who crashed his No. 13 Dodge late in the opening practice, was back on the track for just three laps in the second session. Long returned after help from the No. 97 team of Peyton Sellers, whose car dropped debris that caused the wreck.
Coors Light Pole Qualifying to set the 40-car XFINITY field is scheduled Saturday at 11:15 a.m. ET (FOX Sports 1).
Ty Dillon fast early in Monster Mile practice
Ty Dillon soared atop the NASCAR XFINITY Series leaderboard in opening practice Friday morning at Dover International Speedway.
Dillon, driving the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevrolet, posted a fast lap of 158.033 mph under overcast skies at the mile-long concrete track. He was a shade faster than 18-year-old Erik Jones, second-fastest at 156.829 mph in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Toyota.
Brian Scott, a teammate of Dillon's at RCR, was third-fastest in the No. 2 Chevrolet in preparation for Saturday's Buckle Up 200 presented by Click It or Ticket (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX). Sprint Cup Series regulars Kasey Kahne and Austin Dillon completed the top five.
XFINITY Series points leader Chris Buescher, driving the Roush Fenway Racing No. 60 Ford, was ninth-fastest of the 40 cars to turn laps in the 55-minute session. Defending series champion Chase Elliott posted the 10th-fastest lap in the JR Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet.
The session was brought to an abrupt end with Carl Long crashed with two minutes left. After hitting a piece of debris, Long's No. 13 crunched into the outside wall in Turn 4 before sliding down the banking and into the inside wall on the frontstretch.
NASCAR officials indicated that they would investigate the incident in the XFINITY Series garage. FOX Sports 1 reported that the debris came from the No. 97 Chevrolet of Peyton Sellers.
Final XFINITY Series practice is scheduled Friday at 2-3:25 p.m. ET (FOX Sports 1). Coors Light Pole Qualifying for the 12th of 33 races this season is scheduled Saturday at 11:15 a.m. ET (FS1).