Limited visibility halted Monday’s Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway on Lap 132 of 160, continuing a tough weekend of weather conditions at the 2.5-mile track. Chris Buescher was the race leader when the caution flag came out.
The red flag came out on Lap 138 at 2:50 p.m. ET, and the cars went to pit road. At 3:08, drivers were allowed to exit their vehicles; at 3:45 crews were ordered to cover the cars as the threat of severe weather moved into the area. At 4:10, the race was called with Buescher declared as the winner.
The start of the race (NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) was delayed by a day when weather washed it out Sunday. Then, the green flag for Monday’s rescheduled race was pushed back when damp conditions persisted and led to weepers. Precipitation delayed the race at Lap 85 with Joey Logano in the lead.
Originally scheduled for 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday, the series’ second stop at the 2.5-mile track was moved to Monday at 11 a.m. ET. Green flag for Monday was originally set for 11:07 a.m. ET, then moved to 12:07 p.m.
Drivers were called to their cars at 11:50 a.m., and the race got underway at 12:10 p.m., with polesitter Martin Truex Jr. leading the field to the green.
Truex Jr. led 16 laps before a competition caution. Shortly after that, he ran into bad luck, hitting the wall in Turn 2 on Lap 19 and had to come to pit road. Truex later cut a tire on Lap 40 and headed to the garage for repairs before returning on Lap 59.
The June Sprint Cup Series Pocono event also was postponed by weather and eventually ran the following Monday. Three-time “Tricky Triangle” winner Kurt Busch was the victor in his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet with Hendrick Motorsports’ Dale Earnhardt Jr. locking in the runner-up position.
This week, as Dale Earnhardt Jr. continues to recover from concussion-like symptoms, Jeff Gordon is wheeling the No. 88 Chevrolet for the second time this season. He started 24th.