Young endures tough weekend at Gateway, finishes 32nd

Madison, Ill. -  Fighting handling problems through much of the weekend, Ron Young finished Saturday night's Busch Silver Celebration 250 at Gateway International Raceway in 32nd place, seven laps behind race winner Carl Edwards.

"We struggled all day, the car was real tight," Young said.

Young though, noted shortly after Saturday night's event that the finish was better than the week before at Martinsville, when his No. 71 Chevrolet was credited with 40th place after being involved in a wreck.

"It might not have been what we wanted, but it's better than we got last week," Young said.

Saturday's race at the track just across the  Mississippi River from downtown St. Louis started over 90 minutes late after severe thunderstorms swept through the area and delayed the start of the event. When the green flag waved, Young, who qualified 38th, picked up a few spots over the first couple of laps. But problems with the car's handling combined with a changed track surface due to the heavy rains made things tough for Young, who went down a lap on the race's 28th circuit and never recovered.

Despite the early problems, the RB1 Motorsports team stayed focused on making the No. 71 Chevrolet better throughout the race as crew chief Greg Tester called for changes to the car over the course of the event. At the same time, Young's pit crew turned in solid stops throughout the night.

Young and the rest of the team will now take some time to decide when to return to the track, which could come the weekend of October 28 when the Busch Series races at Memphis.

"We'll step back and look at some things. We've just got to keep digging," Young said.

Young is still seeking sponsorship for events later in the season. Interested parties can contact the team at its shop at (770) 922-1275.

To learn more about Ron Young, visit his website at www.ron-young.net.

Fans can also visit his official site at ron71young.com.