“We never quit on this team”: FRM’s Noah Gragson makes his feelings known after a solid finish at COTA
NASCAR Cup Series driver Noah Gragson finished in eighth place after a tough start at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) last Sunday. The road course race in Austin, Texas gave the No. 4 Front Row Motorsports (FRM) team its best finish for the season.
Gragson was 33rd in Stage 1 and 31st in Stage 2 but took advantage of a battle between Tyler Reddick and Shane van Gisbergen during the final stage. The 26-year-old made a bold move to pass them even though his tires were worn out and secured his first top-10 finish since last July.
"Some people, it's not driving good at the beginning of the race, they might quit, but we never quit on this team. Super proud of everyone's efforts. It was not looking good the first run. The first run, we were horrible, and they went to work on it. Pit crew did a great job. Crew chief (Drew Blickensderfer) called a great race, and we were able to get up there at the end," Gragson said (via Altdriver).
Noah Gragson signed a multi-year deal with FRM last year and this top-10 finish was a much-needed boost after 28th and 34th place in the first two races of the season. However, NASCAR took Gragson’s and Reddick’s cars back to its Research & Development Center after the post-race inspection.
"It feels good to finally run up front again" - Noah Gragson after final stage move
Noah Gragson joined FRM after his first full-time season with Stewart–Haas Racing last year, where he finished 24th overall. Gragson joined Legacy Motor Club for his rookie season in 2023, driving the No. 42 Chevy. However, he was suspended for breaking conduct rules and missed the latter half of the season. The Las Vegas, Nevada native now has eight top-10 finishes in 75 Cup races.
During a post-race interview with FrontStretch, Gragson explained the final stage with Tyler Reddick and Shane van Gisbergen.
"They were racing super hard at the end. I’m not sure what tires they were on, but I was on super old tires. I saw them getting into each other, and I was just going to try and be patient, let them get to Turn 19. Then they got each other again," Noah Gragson said (00:06).
"We had three wide at one point, bouncing off the rub blocks. It was pretty wild, but we all raced each other super hard and super clean. Shout out to those guys. It feels good to finally run up front again. It was an up-and-down day, but we were able to get up there at the end," he added.
The NASCAR Cup Series will move to Phoenix Raceway for the Shriners Children's 500 this Sunday.