Aric Almirola finished eighth in the Quaker State 400 Presented by Walmart at Kentucky Speedway on Sunday despite leading 128 laps, the most of any driver.
The top 10 finish for Almirola, his eighth of the year, added 39 points to his season total.
Almirola started in fourth position and led 128 laps in the race. The 13th-year driver has collected two career victories, with 23 top-five finishes and 69 results inside the top 10.
The eighth-place result on Sunday was the first time Almirola has cracked the top 10 at Kentucky Speedway.
The Tampa, Florida native’s starting and finishing positions compared favorably to his career averages, starting 17 spots higher than his career mark of 20.7 and completing the race 14 places ahead of his 21.7 career average finish.
Almirola’s eighth-place finish was against 38 other drivers. The race endured eight cautions and 42 caution laps. There were 13 lead changes.
Cole Custer earned the checkered flag in the race, and Martin Truex Jr followed in second. Matt DiBenedetto placed third, Kevin Harvick took fourth, and Kurt Busch finished off the top five.
After Almirola won the first stage, Brad Keselowski drove the No. 2 car to the win in Stage 2.