TOLEDO, OH- In his first visit to Toledo Speedway in 3 years, Brandon Watson weathered an up-and-down afternoon. The lone Canadian to qualify for the event, Watson fought an ill-handling racecar through the first 75 laps and was in the process of moving into the top-10 when engine troubles ended his afternoon early.
“I wasn’t really expecting that”, admitted Watson. “We were riding in 11th, on the outside trying to work our way up, just about to make a move for the top-10 and it caught us by surprise. The motor shut off, and we were done”.
The third-generation star opened up the afternoon timing in 16th quickest in a stacked 42 car field. A loose handling car made advancement difficult in the early stages of the event, with Watson working overtime to keep his ride under control.
“It was a bit of a rough feature for us”, explained the Stayner, ON youngster. “Right off the bat we were loose in and loose off, so I was battling that the whole race, just working hard to keep the tires on it and keep it smooth entering and exiting”.
A timely adjustment at the halfway break allowed Watson to make his way through traffic, including a highlight reel battle for 11th with ASA Midwest Tour veteran Jonathan Eilen before succumbing to mechanical difficulties on lap-90, ultimately settling for a 23rd place finish.
Despite a result that was in no way indicative of how good the team is, Watson was able to leave Toledo looking forward to Round #2 of the ARCA/CRA Super Series tour.
“We were working our way up, and it was an unfortunate way to end our night. But we’re getting more familiar with this car, working hard and I know we can keep on improving. We’ll get this engine back to McGunegill, prepare for Anderson and see if we can have some better luck there”.
Brandon Watson’s 2014 campaign is made possible thanks to support from Shear Metal Products, Royal Distributing, Barrie Frame & Alignment, The Smart Exchange and Knightworks Designs. Additional packages are still available.
Brandon will return to action with the ARCA/CRA Super Series on April 26th at Anderson Speedway in Anderson, Indiana.
Be sure to visit www.BrandonWatsonRacing.com for the team’s complete 2014 schedule, and check out Brandon Watson Racing on Facebook for exclusive behind-the-scenes photos as the team prepares for the ‘Anderson 125’.
By Spencer Lewis (@itsspencerlewis)
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