“Going to cry myself to sleep”: Taylor Gray makes emotions known on heartbreaking end to his playoff run

Syndication: The Indianapolis Star - Source: Imagn
Taylor Gray - Syndication: The Indianapolis Star - Source: Imagn

Taylor Gray was left to rue a disappointing end to the playoff race at Charlotte Roval. The Xfinity Series driver was eliminated after a single-point deficit to the cutline.

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Heading into the weekend, Gray was fifth in the standings and 16 points ahead of the nearest rival below the cutline. However, his fortunes took a turn during Saturday's 68-lap event.

He began on the back foot with a 17th-place start and failed to score any stage points. Moreover, the No.54 driver got stuck in traffic after a late-race pitstop during a caution. The 20-year-old ultimately had to settle for a 13th-place finish, while drivers like Sammy Smith jumped ahead of the cutline and secured a final eight berth.

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Notably, Smith made an unscheduled pit stop, but was bailed out by the final caution that occurred while he was on pit road. This allowed him to get up front and finish third.

Gray, on the other hand, lamented the missed opportunity in a post-race interview.

"I don't know probably gonna go home and cry myself to asleep. I mean, don't know it is what it is," he said via X/John Newby
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When asked if his late-race pitstop had anything to do with the result, he replied,

"I'm not sure you know Jason made that call and obviously any call that Jason makes, I'm gonna stand behind them 100 percent and I'm still go to stand behind that call 100 percent. The thing it comes down to is we just weren't good enough. We didn't to get stage points all day and we just flat out weren't good enough." [0:47 onwards]
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Taylor Gray has gone winless this season. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver had a middling playoff run as well, with Kansas being the only exception where he scored a top-10 finish.


Taylor Gray's crew chief praises his 'poise' despite crushing defeat at Charlotte

Taylor Gray's crew chief, Jason Ratcliff, has backed his driver amid the No.54 team's playoff exit. He noted how Gray 'finished strong' and 'didn't run anything over'.

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"For a young driver that's got that much pressure in a tight point situation, I thought he showed a lot of poise and you could hear it in his voice. Finished strong and didn't run anything over. Most can't say that," Ratcliff said via Fanbuzz.com

Across 28 starts, Taylor Gray has amassed twelve top-10s, with half of them being top-5 finishes. The rookie driver has also bagged three poles and led 203 laps, but couldn't convert them into race wins.

Gray currently stands ninth on the driver's standings with 2100 points and an average finish of 15.5 against an average start of 9.8. His best result this season are a pair of runner-up finishes at Mexico City and Texas.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

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Edited by Vignesh Kanna
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