LAS VEGAS, Nev. – In his sixth career NASCAR XFINITY Series outing, Modified standout Ryan Preece in the No. 01 GK Services Chevrolet scored a much needed top-20 finish in Saturday’s Boyd Gaming 300 at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway.
The 18th-place effort was his second best finish overall and the second among the JD Motorsports with Gary Keller camp behind Ross Chastain in 16th. More impressive, Preece rebounded after being collected on lap two with drivers Corey Lajoie and Jeb Burton.
Finishes of 40th and 22nd in the first two races of 2016 have left more to be desired for the Berlin, Connecticut native, but with an 18th place run in his Las Vegas debut, Preece may be righting his JD Motorsports with Gary Keller ship.
“Really solid rebound, just keeping getting laps and learning these cars,” said Preece, whose 14th place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2014 was a career-best. “Were still trying to dig out of Daytona, but we will get there.”
Getting there he is.
Preece climbed to 18th in the championship standings, a gain of three spots from Atlanta last weekend.
Filling the seat that Landon Cassill delivered two top-10 finishes last year, Preece surely is feeling the pressure, but pressure is something that the NASCAR Next alum is used to.
There’s no question that Preece still has a lot to learn and the expectations are high, he knows this. However, if the 25-year-old can build some consistency, the momentum factor will be his biggest asset as the season progresses.
After being the 2009 and 2012 Whelen Modified Tour champion, Preece won the championship in 2013, ultimately opening the XFINITY doors for Preece to now showcase his talent among NASCAR’s finest.
With time, he vows to deliver.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01
