The 2020 Canadian eMotorsports Network NASCAR Series champion earned his first victory of 2021 in the final regular season race of the season on Tuesday in the Cracked Device Co. 200 at the Daytona International Speedway.
Ryan Gibson (West Virginia, USA, Kobra Kai Racing) started ninth and sat outside the top-ten for the majority of the race, ultimately moving to the front of the field in the final stage and securing the victory. The victory moves him from ninth to fifth in the standings entering the playoffs.
After six victories during the 2020 season, Gibson needed his first win of 2021 to build momentum for the post-season.
Jacob Nelson (Tennessee, USA, Red Dirt Racing) won both stages in the race.
Entering the race, 14-drivers had already secured their place in the playoffs, with two positions still to be determined.
In the end, Andy Hertel (Ohio, USA, 519 E-Racing) had his best race of the season, finishing fifth and securing the 15th position in the standings. The final playoff qualifier was Kevin Daigle (Ontario, Canada, True North Racin’) who also had a solid night, finishing sixth.
It wasn’t meant to be for Jason Butler (Ontario, Canada, 519 E-Racing) who missed out on the playoffs by 27-points, but had started Tuesday’s race in the pole-position and had led the majority of the first stage before getting caught up in some on-track contact.
Also finishing in the top-five on Tuesday night was Ty Higginbotham (Missouri, USA, Stars and Stripes Racing) in second, Jose Mercado (Florida, USA, Stars and Stripes Racing) in third and Darcy Ford (PEI, Canada, Atlantic Motorsports) in fourth.
The Round-of-16 begins next Tuesday, May 18 with the U.S. Navy 250 at the Texas Motor Speedway. Races at Road America (May 25) and Bristol Motor Speedway (June 1) will complete the first playoff round, with the top 12 drivers advancing.
Here are the official results from Tuesday night at Daytona.
Here are the driver standings at the end of the regular season.
Here are the team standings following the Cracked Device Co. 200.
For more information on the Canadian eMotorsports Network, visit www.hollandcollege.com/eSports, www.facebook.com/eMotorsportsCAN, www.twitter.com/eMotorsportsCAN and www.instagram.com/eMotorsportsCAN.
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For more information about this release, please contact:
Daniel Cudmore, Athletics Development and Communications Coordinator
Tel: (902) 894-6870
Date: Thursday, May 13, 2021