41 cars joined Menard in the effort to make the field with Cole Whitt’s #98 Standard Plumbing Supply Chevrolet sent home, sweeping the DNQs at Richmond for 2016. Menard began the Richmond weekend 25th in the opening practice, 19th in Happy Hour, then slipped to 30th in qualifying with a lap of 122.078mph. ran in the 1993 Twin 125s at Daytona, but a late wreck with Kurt Busch left him 16th.

The next day, he looked for another strong run in a throwback paint scheme resembling the Hendrick Motorsports entry Al Unser, Jr. Last week at Darlington, he won the pole for the XFINITY Series race. He also started a season-best 3rd last month at Pocono, but had to settle for a 35th-place finish. His best run in that stretch came during the grueling 400-miler at Indianapolis, five years since his breakthrough first victory, where he came home 10th. The finish, which came in Menard’s 353rd series start, was his second of the season and first since Kansas this past spring, 15 races ago.Ĭoming into Richmond, Menard hadn’t failed to finish a race since Kansas, lifting him to 22nd in the point standings. Paul Menard picked up the 4th last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Saturday’s Federated Auto Parts 400 at the Richmond International Raceway when his #27 Dutch Boy / Menards Chevrolet fell out after a crash ended his run 264 of 407 laps into the event.