BRISTOL, Tenn. (August 24, 2012) – Justin Allgaier and his BRANDT Racing team headed to Bristol Motor Speedway with confidence and momentum after an exciting win in Montreal the weekend before.  A track he knows well and has had prior success at, Allgaier looked to Bristol as a place he could continue his progress in the NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) championship hunt.  Unfortunately, it was not to be, as contact on lap six with another competitor relegated Allgaier to a 30th-place finish.  The BRANDT driver remains fifth in the NNS point standings, but lost a significant amount of ground to the leaders.

The BRANDT team entered the one-day show at Bristol Motor Speedway with their heads held high, prepared for another good result.  During the nearly three-hour practice session, the team worked diligently to find the correct set up for their driver for the evening’s Food City 250.  Allgaier laid down an impressive lap during qualifying to start sixth for the 250-lap event.  The start of the race was pushed back nearly a half an hour due to a storm that moved through the area, with NASCAR instating a lap-50 competition caution as a result.  

From the drop of the green flag, it was evident that the night could be an interesting one on track, and it didn’t take long for this fact to play out for the BRANDT team.  Contact on lap six with Austin Dillon sent Allgaier into the outside wall twice, putting an end to any hopes of a successful night for the team.  Allgaier brought his embattled No. 31 Chevy to the attention of the crew and they made significant repairs to the car, putting Allgaier numerous laps down.  Initially the team had hoped to be able to gain the laps back one at a time through the Lucky Dog and wave around rules, but the damage proved to be too much and the caution periods did not fall in line where the team needed them to.  Allgaier went on to finish the event in the 30th position.  

“This clearly was not the day any of us had hoped for," said a frustrated Allgaier. "To come in here with so much momentum and excitement, only to have it dashed six laps into the race, is a very hard thing to handle.  I just hate it so much for this team and all the BRANDT folks that were here.  All we can do is dust ourselves off and head to Atlanta ready go again.  There is still a great deal of racing to be done this season and we’re in it for the long haul.”

Next Stop:  The NASCAR Nationwide Series heads to the very fast 1.54-mile Atlanta Motor Speedway to celebrate Labor Day with a Saturday night event.  The NRA American Warrior 300 will be broadcast LIVE on ESPN2 and PRN affiliates beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET.