Ryan Reed, driver of the #16 Lilly Diabetes/American Diabetes Association Ford, stands on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR XFINITY Series O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway on November 5, 2016 in Fort Worth, Texas. Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Ryan Reed and the No. 16 Lilly Diabetes/American Diabetes Association team earned a top-15 finish on Saturday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway, crossing the finish line in 12th.  The finish keeps Reed within striking distance in the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) Chase approaching next weekend’s cutoff race at Phoenix International Raceway.

After two practice sessions on Friday, the NXS set the starting lineup with a three-round qualifying session on Saturday morning.  Reed made it past the first round of qualifying, but with just a handful of seconds left in the second round was bumped from the top-12 and ultimately earned a 13th-place starting position.

“I think it was one of those days where it isn’t going to make or break your season, but once you get down to crunch time you have to have top seven or eight days to get into the final four,” said Reed.  “If that is all we can do we probably aren’t going to make it. If we can go to Phoenix and throw a Hail Mary and pull something off, that would be awesome.”

On the initial race start, the inside line backed up and Reed collected a little bit of damage to the grille of his No. 16 Ford Mustang, dropping Reed to 17th on the first lap.  When the caution flew on lap 8, Gould determined that he would not bring his driver down pit road to fix the damage, as track position was too precious to give up.

Following the lap 12 restart, Reed began working his way back into the top-15.  The young driver improved to 12th before making a green flag pit stop on lap 48 for four tires and fuel, along with track bar and air pressure adjustments.

As the race approached the halfway point, Reed maintained his position inside the top-15, while battling a Mustang that was free on entry and exit, and tight in the center.  Gould opted to bring his driver down pit road under caution on lap 72 for four tires, fuel and more air pressure and track bar adjustments.

The adjustments proved to be too much for the No. 16 on the following run.  When the caution came back out on lap 90, Reed once again visited pit road for fresh tires and fuel, but Gould decided to do away with the previous track bar adjustment.

As the race entered the closing stages, Reed would battle a tight-handling condition.  A caution on lap 165 ensured that Reed would have enough fuel to make it to the finish as he visited pit road for four tires and fuel.

Reed exited pit road in 13th and gained one position in the final laps to close out the day in 12th.  Reed and the No. 16 team enter next Saturday night’s Chase cutoff race at Phoenix International Raceway just five points outside of the top-four.

Roush Fenway Racing