It’s been a really weird day in Kansas. Erik Jones’ No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro had decent speed throughout the race, running consistently inside the top-15 throughout the race’s first stage.
Problems with the right-rear tire on the Petty GMS Motorsports entry have plagued the team, and barring disaster, will cost the organization a solid finish inside the top-20, after not being able to get the wheel off.
The problem persisted throughout the race’s second stage and Jones returned to the track on the same tires. However, it was time to fix the issue under caution, after the FOCUS Factor sponsored entry ran out of fuel.
Sitting on pit road for 10 minutes, the team tried many things to get the right-rear wheel off the No. 43, but were unsuccessful for a long time, until they decided just to cut the thing off.
THEY'VE DONE IT!
The right-rear wheel is FINALLY off the No. 43 after over 10 minutes of being stationary on pit road.
Well done to the pit crew ?#NASCAR #AdventHealth400 pic.twitter.com/gDJxqpAf4F
— NASCAR on TSN (@NASCARonTSN) May 15, 2022
Jones would return to the race eight laps behind the leader, and out of contention for the victory.
