DAYTONA BEACH — Ricky Taylor made his Team Penske debut on Saturday, but that was far from a guarantee earlier in the week.
"I felt a little weird on Wednesday, and then woke up Wednesday night and just felt miserable," said Taylor, who left his dad's team — Wayne Taylor Racing — last year to join Penske. "I had the chills, hardly slept, and went to the medical center that morning and they told me I had the flu."
Taylor rested the next two days, and [...]
DAYTONA BEACH — Ricky Taylor made his Team Penske debut on Saturday, but that was far from a guarantee earlier in the week.
"I felt a little weird on Wednesday, and then woke up Wednesday night and just felt miserable," said Taylor, who left his dad's team — Wayne Taylor Racing — last year to join Penske. "I had the chills, hardly slept, and went to the medical center that morning and they told me I had the flu."
Taylor rested the next two days, and missed qualifying on Friday. In-fact, the only time he got in a car before Saturday's green flag was to run the mandatory practice lap (Friday) to be eligible for the race.
Luckily, the 28-year-old woke up Saturday morning and was good as new.
"I felt great," he said. "I think I've drank a gallon of Pedialyte (today). You might need a new microphone after I leave, but I feel good. There are no excuses."
If there were, however, Taylor would certainly have a good one.
During the first driver change on Saturday, teammate Helio Castroneves, who qualified the car in Taylor's place the day prior, exited the No. 7 Acura and Taylor hopped in, ready to officially make his debut. However, the door wouldn't close completely, and Taylor had to bring the car back to pit road after one lap.
"I kept pulling on it and didn’t seem to want to latch," Taylor said. "It only opened in the corners, mainly the right-hand hairpins. At high speeds, the wind pushes it shut. It was kind of frustrating. We had to come in and fix it. Apparently, it was a small fix, though, so they got us back out."