Erik Jones eyes Pocono as turning point to 2019 season

Immediately after flashing beneath the green flag and starting last Sunday's Coca-Cola 500, Erik Jones stood on the throttle of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Camry and drove it like a man possessed, motoring up into the fray and picking off one competitor after another. Rapidly making his way into the top 10, all seemed well with the world for the 23-year-old. Until Lap 22, that is. "It was unfortunate because we had a really fast car to start the race," said Jones from Pocono Raceway on Friday evening. "We just had a tire go down early and that ended our day. We had a flat at probably the worst possible spot on the track so it was unfortunate. We've been bringing good race cars to the races but we just haven’t been able to get the finishes we're capable of. ... Hopefully, Pocono on Sunday will be that race where we can get things headed back the right way." Pocono marks the 14th stop for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series this year. Set to run on the anomalous 2.5-mile "Tricky Triangle" based in pastoral Long Pond, Pennsylvania, Jones, currently 17th in the points standings, is pleased to be in the Keystone State. RELATED: See the standings "I've always been a fan of Pocono," said Jones, who has an average finishing position of 11.2 in four starts at Pocono. "It's a different race track, for sure. It doesn't really relate anything else we do throughout the year, but as a driver, it's a challenge. It's fun. I really like coming here and trying to figure out how and trying to figure out how to get your car to drive the way you want it to in all three corners, especially with all three of them being so different." When asked about Pocono's funky three-turn configuration -- Turn 1 banked at 14 degrees, Turn 2 banked at 19 degrees and Turn 3 banked at 6 degrees -- Jones admitted that one never knows what to expect when rolling out onto Pocono asphalt. "Yeah, it is abnormal track. The three corners are so vastly different,  but with this new package, it makes it all unknown. It’s going to take a few laps to really figure out how get around here with this package and how much throttle you can carry and how much you have to lift. It's going to be different figuring it out. ... "It's really tough to win one of these things," Jones furthered. "You need so many things to go your way. Not only do you have to have a fast race car and to be in a position to win it, it takes so much more than that. It’s staying out of trouble and having good pit stops and not having penalties. So many things to have a 400 or 500 mile race go your way. It's a challenge." MORE: Sunday's full starting lineup With Pocono signaling the 14th start of the season, Jones and the No. 20 Camry have scored three top fives, led 44 laps and posted up an average finish of 16.2. Not bad, but the native of Byron, Michigan, as well as the men who twirl spanners and dial-in his race cars, are looking for much more. "I can think of a few races where we had a shot to win and didn't capitalize," Jones said. "However, the summer months have been good to us in the past. We just need some luck on our side and have some things go our way, but as far as all that, I think everything has been pretty good. We’ve been bringing good and fast cars to the track and have been in positions that we've wanted to be in, but we just had some things go wrong. There is work to be done there just to improve things even more, but as far as bringing the cars we need to the race track, I feel like that’s something we’ve done pretty well each weekend." With three top 10 finishes in four starts on the 2.5-mile monolith, Jones and company are looking at Sunday afternoon's race to reach for another gear. "It's a good place for us. We know we can run up front. In fact, that sounds like a plan to me."