Regan Smith disappointed but thankful after Daytona 500 run
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Regan Smith has had better days. He's also had better weekends.
Smith, the 11th-hour replacement for suspended Kurt Busch, struggled with an Ill-handling race car Sunday and finished 16th in the Daytona 500. That came a day after he flipped while contending for the lead in the Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
"It started off really tight with the race car and (we) never got it turning," Smith said. "I don't know. It was kind of frustrating. I actually anticipated a much better day and (had) nothing much more to show for it."
Smith replaced Busch in the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 41 car after Busch was suspended Friday by NASCAR when details emerged from a protective order issued by a judge in Delaware. Smith practiced in the car Saturday while Busch lost two appeals.
While driving the JR Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet on Saturday in the Xfinity race, Smith was caught in a crash involving 10 other cars. The car flipped and landed on its wheels. Smith was not injured.
"I got turned," Smith said after the incident. "We had a fast race car. We had an opportunity to win."
On Sunday, his car simply struggled to turn. "Those (Stewart-Haas) guys did a nice job all weekend," he said, "but we just plowed through the corners."
Tony Gibson, the crew chief on the No. 41 car, praised Smith and the team for a top-20 result under trying circumstances.
"We did what we wanted to do and that's come out of here with a decent finish and salvage some good points," Gibson told Paste BN Sports. "I'm proud of Regan. He held in there all day long. Did a great job, kept it out of the fence."
A replacement driver hasn't been named for the No. 41 for next weekend's event at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Gibson said the team will start working on that decision Monday.
"We'll sit down and talk about it," he said. "When everybody above that red line that works upstairs decides who that's going to be, we'll be ready. Whatever we've got to do. I'm going to prepare a car just like if Kurt Busch was driving it, and we'll adjust on it when we get down there.
For his part, Smith thanked the SHR crew on Twitter.
"Appreciate the 41 guys (letting me) wheel their car today," Smith wrote. "Hate that we couldn't get up the the front and challenge at all. Disappointed but had fun."
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