Jeremy took to the track for practice and made just under 20 laps to get the car warmed up and regain his feel for the track.  Although he hadn't driven the car very hard, he did get a feel of what changes he wanted to make to better the car's handling.  Unfortunately, when Jeremy fired the car to get back onto the track the motor started knocking very badly.  The crew thought there was another problem with a pushrod as there had been at Mansfield, OH.  However, that was not the case.  After a thorough inspection, Jeremy and the crew could not pinpoint the problem to fix it at the race track.

Jeremy looks for the cause of his motor problems at Salem Speedway

Due to the circumstances, Jeremy was forced to make one qualifying lap to get into the race.  With 30 cars in attendance, no one would go home.  Jeremy took one slow lap, nursing the engine as much as possible, and started the race at the rear of the field.  "This isn't fun," Jeremy said, "but we just have to start the race and get some points."  Jeremy took the green flag for the Lucas Oil 250 with the field.  After completing one lap, Jeremy had to pull his #18 Chevrolet Monte Carlo to the infield and watch the rest of the race from pit road.

Jeremy will now work to find and fix the problem with his race engine.  He plans to next race at Illiana Motor Speedway in Schererville, IN on August 20th.

Jeremy signs autographs and poses for pictures before the start of the Lucas Oil 250 presented by Holley Performance