Menard will start, uncertain about finishing Talladega race

Paul Menard said the plan for Sunday at Talladega is to see how he feels, but he’s probably going to vacate the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford at some point.

“But we’re going to see how it goes,” said Menard.

Wood Brothers announced Thursday night that Truck Series driver Matt Crafton will be on standby for Menard in the 1000Bulbs.com 500 as Menard has been dealing with ongoing soreness and neck pain. Crafton spent time behind the wheel in practice getting acclimated to his surroundings.

“I feel pretty good, it’s just been an ongoing issue that I’ve had since I played football,” Menard said. “Grew up playing hockey and football, and I’ve known about this for 20 (years), and it’s just starting to come to a head a little bit.

“Getting old. All part of it. All part of what you sign up for when you’re born, I guess.”

Menard qualified his car Saturday afternoon, clocking in 14th fastest.

“My necks got some disc issues and things that if I were to get upside down, that’d be pretty bad,” he explained. “Normal hits aren’t bad; it’s upside-down things that are bad.”