DARLINGTON, S.C.: Cole Custer collected his sixth-straight top-five at Darlington Raceway, but he clearly wanted more on Saturday.
Custer came from 21st to finish second in the Sport Clips Haircuts 200—the same position where he restarted for an overtime battle with Christopher Bell.
Despite Custer flexing his muscle on the backstretch, Bell maintained the lead for the win.
“We were both going for it,” Custer said. “We were just trying to carry as much throttle as possible, and Christopher had the momentum there. I need to see a replay of the exit of Turn 2. It just got tight. I don’t know if he came down or if I came up, but that was just hard racing.
“I am so proud of our team. We were in trouble after qualifying 21st, so for us to get this Haas Automation Ford Mustang in second place and really have a car so good throughout the day means a lot to what this team can do.”
Custer worked his way up to ninth at the end of Stage 1 on Lap 46. He picked up additional points after finishing sixth in the second stage. Custer restarted fifth for the final segment and had worked his way to third with 30 to go.
Points leader passed Justin Allgaier passed Custer for third, while Sheldon Creed caught Bell for the lead with eight laps remaining in the race. Three circuits later, AJ Allmendinger tagged the Turn 1 wall to trigger the sixth and final caution.
Creed’s 15-second pit stop dropped the No. 18 Toyota to third. Allgaier suffered similar woes and dropped to 10th. When the green flag waved, the battle ensued between Bell and Custer.
“It was just really tight racing,” Custer said. “It is always fun to race with Christopher. We were both just trying to stay in the throttle off of Turn 2. I couldn’t tell if he came down or I came up a little bit. it was a hard decision to make because he was coming down and I didn’t know if I should lift or stay in it and let him wreck himself. I think if I had stayed in it, I would have wrecked myself.
“It was a great race by everyone on our team. To come from 21st to second is a huge accomplishment. I can’t thank everyone enough, especially the pit crew. The pit crew did a great job.”
Custer cut five points off of Allgier’s points lead with his 10th top five of the season. And with three races remaining in the regular season, Custer sits second, 28 points behind the No. 7 JRM Chevrolet.
“It is a testament to what this team is,” Custer said. “We really put a good day together. We were really confused and in trouble after qualifying but we looked at all the notes and figured out how to make it better and we did a great job coming back.”
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
