ARCA: POCONO

Robb Brent, No. 6 Toyota Camry
Track: Pocono Raceway
Event: Pennsylvania ARCA 125
Distance: 50 laps / 125 miles
When: Saturday, August 6th

ESR, Brent Score Top-10 in Rain Delayed Pocono Race

Robb Brent

Long Pond, PA. -- Robb Brent and the No. 6 Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR) team may have had to wait an extra day to run the Pennsylvania 125 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menard's event at Pocono Raceway, but when they did, they left with a solid showing to their credit.

"The guys did a really good job getting this car ready for Robb. It was our second race with him, and it was a little easier since we knew how he liked the feel of the car, and the communication was down," team owner Eddie Sharp said. "Everyone did a great job."

Pocono marked Brent's second start under the ESR umbrella. In June at the Michigan International Speedway, the 24-year-old started 22nd and muscled his way to 11th at the finish. Despite Pocono being only the second time the two sides partnered, both entered the weekend with a storied past at the unique, three-cornered race track. Owner Sharp has visited victory lane three times at Pocono, and Brent earned his first series win there in 2010.

With all signs pointing towards a solid showing, Brent climbed behind the wheel of the No. 6 Toyota Camry for practice and qualifying on Friday. Following his two laps around the "Tricking Triangle" Brent showed 14th fastest on the speed chart, giving the team a seventh row starting position.

The race however, was delayed a day after rain moved into the area. The 125-mile race was then set for Sunday following the conclussion of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) event, which was cut short due to the rain. With a rare Sunday morning start time, Brent climbed behind the wheel of the No. 6 Camry as veteran crew chief Trip Bruce climbed atop the pit box. Bruce, who also called the race for Sharp and driver Justin Lofton in the conclussion to the delayed NCWTS event, had the freshest notes possible on the track conditions.

Once the green flag finally waved over the Pennsylvania 125, it took only two laps for a caution flag to fall. Prolonged cleanup forced Brent and the rest of the ARCA field to make a dozen laps under the yellow flag. With only 50 laps scheduled, Brent knew his time was cut short to move to the front. Once back under green, his climb was quick, and by the time the race hit the halfway mark, the Michigan native showed in the seventh position.

A yellow flag opened the door for the No. 6 ESR team to make their first, and only, pit stop of the day. After Brent declared that the car was tight, crew chief Bruce called for an air pressure adjustment, four tires and fuel. The crew laid down a solid stop, moving Brent into the top-five for the restart.

Two more caution flags slowed the pace of the race through the final 20 laps. Brent held his own despite the lingering tight condition on the No. 6 Toyota, and wheeled his way to eighth at the finish.

"We would have liked to had a long run there at the end but we had a few caution flags. Robb needed a longer run there because the tight condition got the best of us on the restarts. All in all, a top-10 is a great run for our second race together," Sharp added.

ESR will next enter ARCA competition on August 25th at Madison Intl Speedway.

ESR PRACTICE & QUALIFYING UPDATE

RACE PREVIEW

ESR at Pocono: Team owner Eddie Sharp has quite a storied history at Pocono Raceway having visited victory lane three times. He first visited victory lane in 2007 with driver Michael McDowell. In 2008, he finished second in both events with driver Scott Speed. In 2009, Sharp and driver Justin Lofton, who now drives his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series entry, finished second in the first event, only to return and dominate the series' second event at the 2.5-mile track. Lofton led 65 of the possible 82 laps en route to the win. Last season, Sharp made his third trip to victory lane after driver Craig Goess took the checkered flag.

Brent at Pocono: This Saturday's ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards event will be his seventh at the "Tricky Triangle" with all signs pointing to another solid run. In addition to Sharp's success at Pocono, Brent has an impressive stat sheet there including a race win, two top-fives, and six top-10s. Last July Brent broke through to victory lane, scoring his first series win.

Brent and ESR: Brent last raced an Eddie Sharp Racing entry in June at Michigan International Speedway. Brent started 22nd and fought back, driving his way to just outside of the top-10 with a solid 11th place finish.

Robb Brent on Pocono: "I'm really excited. I haven't been able enter many races this year, but if I had to pick one, it would definitely be Pocono. I really enjoy the track. It's always fit my driving style. I had such fun racing the track last year, I had to defend my win."

Busy Bruce: ESR's Trip Bruce will be calling the shots for Brent this weekend in Pocono. He'll be splitting his time between the No. 6 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Tundra of Justin Lofton and Brent's No. 6 Camry in the ARCA garage. The schedule is a benefit to Bruce, as he will have all afternoon on Friday to focus on Brent's ARCA machine throughout practice. Additionally, the Pennsylvania ARCA 125 kicks off following the NCWTS race, giving Brent the freshest notes possible on track conditions.

For more information on Eddie Sharp Racing, follow @TeamESR on Twitter or log on to the Eddie Sharp Racing Fan Page on Facebook.