Crash Sidelines Michael Annett's Strong Finish at Auto Club

The No. 5 Pilot/Flying J Chevrolet Camaro of Michael Annett had a very strong run brewing on Saturday in Southern California. Annett was running inside the top 15 all afternoon long even battling inside the top 10. With 45 laps to go, Annett got loose and ended up getting turned into the outside wall sandwiching Christopher Bell. Despite the damage, the No. 5 crew fixed the car and got it to where Annett could finish the race and believe it or not, the No. 5 was still fast. Annett could see a top 10 finish during the final restart but with a tight racecar he fell to 18th and finished there.

“We had a decent run going in the Pilot Flying J Chevrolet today, and I was able to move up several spots at times," Annett said in the team release. "We were loose on takeoff all day, but I was able to counter that by changing my lines, and we were battling for eighth place in the final stage when we got into the 20 car (Bell). I had the car turned as far left as I could, but was just along for the ride on that one. Jason (crew chief Jason Stockert) and the team did a great job getting it fixed and back out, and we gained spots every time on pit road. We just couldn’t take off on that last restart. We have a couple of weeks to look at some things, and we will get back to it at Texas.”

Annett's strong run accompanied his teammates of Tyler Reddick, Elliott Sadler, and Justin Allgaier. All four cars showed speed which has to be a promising site for team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. His performance on Saturday moved him up to 14th in the standings. He moved up from 16th. Now the XFINITY Series takes two weeks off and will return to Texas next month. Annett finished 20th and 12th at the track in Fort Worth, Texas last season and will look to have another strong run. (Koelle,2018)

Photo Credit - Brandon Wright/Brandon Wright Photography