A quick note from my first NASCAR K&N Pro Series race.

I was flying into Las Vegas from Charlotte the night before the race with a lot of excitement knowing that I would be racing in my very first NASCAR K&N Pro Series race. I knew I was ready for this next step and I couldn’t wait for it to get started. My dad and I drove to the track to meet with the team at registration. I had to upgrade my NASCAR License from the NASCAR Late Model Series to the K&N Pro Series and I think it hit me then, I have made it. I get to finally race in one of NASCAR’s Touring Series with some of the best drivers in the country.

When practice started I felt good, the car was a little loose and I was just getting used to the feel of the car. It is so much heavier than the NASCAR Late Models I drive in the NASCAR D4D program with Revolution Racing, but I figured out quickly how I needed to adjust my driving style for the heavier car. Mike Naake was on the radio coaching me every step of the way. We worked great together and got faster every time we got on the track. I was 17th quick in first practice and  11th quick in second practice. My comfort in the car grew and it was then time to qualify and the team gave me a great car and we qualified 8th...I think to the surprise of a lot of other teams.

Next up was driver introductions and the start of the race. We really had a good race going through the first 120 laps, I was running in the top ten most of the time, as high as 7th as low as 14th when I got freight trained on the outside on a restart, but we were always right in the hunt, but somewhere around lap 120 the night took a turn. I was running 9th passing a lapped car and he turned down on me and damaged my right front fender. We had to pit and fix the damage and change the tire. We went a lap down...20 laps later I had gotten into the lucky dog position, a chance to get my lap back. But bad luck would bite us again and I had a flat tire, so I was not awarded the Lucky dog because we had to pit. The race ended and I finished in 16th, one lap down. We were better than that and it was a frustrating outcome for me, but we will get them next time.

Next time will be at the NASCAR Sprint Cup race weekend at Sonoma on June 25th. I will again be racing with Racers Drive and Naake Motorsports. Wish me luck and thanks for you support,

Jessica Brunelli