In an unexpected turn of events, Corey Heim was thrust into the limelight to race at the Dover Motor Speedway. Heim stepped in to replace Erik Jones, a seasoned racer, who was recovering from a scary accident that occurred last Sunday at the Talladega Superspeedway. 

But despite unusual circumstances, he didn’t get fazed and, with Jones’s help, moved forward head-on. However, despite his efforts, his entry into the Cup Series failed to make ripples, with a notable incident on pit lane casting a shadow over his debut experience.

Corey Heim’s navigating through the new territory at Dover Motor Speedway

Going into the race, Heim did feel nervous—after all, he had never sat in the Next Gen Car! It was evident when he said, “The Next-Gen car was a lot different. I’ve been kind of saying it all weekend — a big change compared to what I’m used to.”

He ultimately bought the no.43 car home in the 25th spot. However, his result could have been better, had he lost precious laps. First, he lost two laps when a caution came at lap 322 for Stenhouse Jr in the middle of the pit cycle before the yellow flag waved. But that’s not all. He was jolted out of the way of the pit lane by Reddick and lost a precious lap there.

In a video shared by Bob Pockrass on his X handle, he did comment on this, saying, “We kind of got messed up on the [pit] cycle there when the leaders pitted. I pitted a lap later and then the caution came out right away, which pinned us an extra lap down.”

After the race, he displayed his emotional side and said, “I feel like I’ve worked so hard for this moment. To finish where I ended up is unfortunate. I feel like I worked my butt off to be there. It’s a really cool moment for me.”

The narrow Dover pit lane proved to be a challenge for drivers

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The narrow pit roads at Dover have been tricky not just for the new debutant, but even for others. On lap 42, almost the entire 37-car field pitted together under the first caution of the afternoon. Then, while Kyle Larson and the no.5 team put together a fast and efficient 9.94-second stop on lap 193, Martin Truex Jr fell back because of his 12.74-second stop. This gap resulted in Larson taking the lead.

We also had a pit mishap with William Byron and the No. 24 team. During the left-side tire change for the No. 24 car, the jack fell prematurely, leaving the left-front tire insecure. This forced the crew to lift the car again, resulting in a 24-second delay in completing the four-tire stop. As a result, not only did the driver lose his advantageous position, but he also found himself in the wreck at lap 329, at an unfortunate moment.

The pit stops at the Monster Mile race were full of drama. Although Corey Heim didn’t have the ideal start in his debut, there’s always another race for him to show what he’s made of.