Gilliland Comes Home Fifth at Michigan

​Start: 19th (based on random drawing)
Finish: 5th

• Stage One: 13th
• Stage Two: 3rd
• Stage Three: 5th

• Todd Gilliland rolled off from 19th place Friday evening at MIS in the No. 38 Speedco Ford F-150. Within a few laps he was up to 12th, but when a caution came with seven laps to go before the end of Stage One, the team decided to pit for tires, fuel and adjustments so he could stay out during the stage break and gain track position. The early pit stop left him in 13th to end Stage One.

• When the second stage began, Gilliland was third and he maintained that position for the entire 20-lap stage to gain valuable points to end Stage Two. At lap 40 he pitted for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment to free up the Speedco Ford.

• When the final stage began Gilliland was second. With numerous cautions and restarts in the final stage of the race, his track position varied throughout the top 10. With the new "choose cone" rule, he was able to gain spots by choosing a lane with fewer trucks ahead of him. As the laps wound down, more cautions forced not one, but two overtime attempts at a green, white, checker finish. Gilliland was 11th to start the final attempt and as the leaders wrecked ahead of him he kept his foot on the gas and finished the race fifth. The solid finish helped him gain a few more points to stay above the playoff cut line in 10th place (+29).

Gilliland on Michigan: "We worked hard all day to get that fifth-place finish. We started 19th, so on paper it's going to look like a good day, but a lot of good trucks wrecked and we still aren't where we need to be. My Front Row Motorsports team is working harder than ever and this is still good momentum. A good finish is always good for morale. We've got a busy week ahead of us and I love road course racing, so I can't wait to get to Daytona next weekend. Big thanks to Speedco, Love's, Ford and Front Row Motorsports for giving me this opportunity. Another top five is a great thing and we'll keep building."