David Gilliland Crew Chief Frank Kerr Wins First Moog ‘Problem Solver Of The Race’ Award At Talladega

David Gilliland and the No. 38 Long John Silver’s Ford Fusion delivered another impressive performance at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, and crew chief Frank Kerr picked up his first Moog Steering and Suspension “Problem Solver of the Race” Award in Sunday’s Camping World RV Sales 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup contest. Gilliland and Kerr finished seventh, giving the Front Row Motorsports team its second straight top-10 finish at Talladega.

Sponsored by global vehicle components manufacturer Federal-Mogul Corporation, the Moog Problem Solver of the Race Award is presented to the crew chief whose car posts the best second-half improvement in average lap time while finishing on the lead lap. The Moog-equipped No. 38 Ford improved by a race-high 0.214 seconds on the 2.66-mile superspeedway.

Although the 38 team didn’t qualify well (24th), Gilliland and Kerr came into Sunday’s race knowing they could run among the leaders, just as they had during May’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega, when Gilliland pushed Front Row teammate David Ragan to victory. Front Row announced late last week that Ragan and Gilliland were being renewed for the 2014 season.

“Front Row continues to make significant progress year after year, and David Gilliland and Frank have been a major part of that success,” said Federal-Mogul Motorsports director Tim Nelson. “Frank gave David a strong car at the start and he kept getting more speed out of their Moog-equipped chassis all afternoon.”