JUSTIN MARKS TAKES THE MID-OHIO CHALLENGE

Justin Marks Takes The Mid-Ohio Challenge

Justin Marks got the best of his thirty-nine X-FINITY Series rivals on Saturday by mastering a soggy circuit and driving to victory at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.  Marks, widely known as a road racing specialist but making just his twenty-fifth career series start, led a race-high forty-three laps in his Number-42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet – including the final ten, beating pole sitter Sam Hornish Junior to the checkered flag by more than three-and-a-half seconds.  Ryan Blaney took third place with Ty Dillon and Justin Allgaier completing the top five.  It was a banner day for Chevrolet as the manufacturer grabbed four of the five top finishing positions.  Marks started sixteenth in the forty-car field but charged forward at the drop of the green flag.  He took his first lead just eleven laps into the race as rain soaked the two-point-two-mile natural road course.  It did subside and the track began to dry at the mid-point of the race.  But the skies opened up again in the second half, which opened the door for Marks to claim his first career win.  Darrell Wallace Junior had the lead on the day’s final restart fourteen laps from the finish but went off the course in the wet conditions, surrendering the top spot to Dillon with Marks in hot pursuit.  Dillon slid off the track himself a short time later, giving Marks the opening he needed to reclaim the lead and drive on to victory … Series leader Elliott Sadler started fourth and finished ninth, which was enough for him to stretch his advantage to twenty-five points over second-place Daniel Suarez, who labored to a twenty-third-place finish … Erik Jones was the highest-finishing rookie, coming home in sixth place.

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