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FORT WORTH, Texas. – The NAPA Racing team with driver Michael Waltrip battled a very ill-handling Toyota Camry to finish 27th place in Sunday’s Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Despite the tough run for the No. 55 team, Waltrip’s teammate David Reutimann led five laps of the race before crossing the finish line in 10th place. His result was Michael Waltrip Racing’s sixth top-10 of the season.
“Our No. 55 Toyota was a handful today,” said Waltrip, who started the 334-lap event in 15th position. “I could barely hang on during that last run. We had a tough time, but we were able to beat some good teams.
“The adjustments we made over the course of the race really didn’t help the overall balance of the car. Somehow we got it running fast during the second half of the race. For some reason, our car just did not drive normal and it was tough to predict how fast it would turn on you. It was a crazy deal.”
Jeff Gordon led the 43-car field to the green flag, and it was not long before Waltrip told crew chief Bobby Kennedy that his NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry was too loose to run the high groove. The handling challenge cost Waltrip five positions on the track by the time the first round of green-flag pit stops started on lap 50. The NAPA team opted to pit on lap 54 for an air pressure adjustment. Shortly after returning to the track, Reed Sorenson brought out the first caution of the event after his oil line worked itself loose. The NAPA team pitted again for four fresh Goodyears. When the race went back to green on lap 64, the team was in 26th position, and Carl Edwards became the new leader.
The next 100 laps saw Waltrip continue to battle a loose condition. He also thought there was too much air in the front tires. Opportunities to come down pit road to make changes happened on laps 114 and 146. This segment saw Waltrip’s car improving in lap times during long green-flag runs with some laps being as fast, if not faster, than the leader. Unfortunately the loss in track position kept Waltrip from making significant gains on the leader board.
On lap 200, the NAPA team was in for its fifth pit stop of the race. Air pressure and wedge adjustments were completed and by lap 215, the NAPA Camry was turning top-five speeds despite being two laps down to Edwards. Waltrip told the team that the adjustments made the car driveable, but it still wasn’t balanced well. Another chance to pit happened under caution on lap 241. Crew chief Bobby Kennedy opted for a four-tire change and fuel. No adjustments were made to the car as Kennedy wanted to see how it would react as the track conditions started to change. The NAPA Toyota returned to the track in 28th place and Edwards remained in the lead.
Unfortunately, the next run saw Waltrip continue to battle the tough conditions. He teetered between 28th and 29th place before the caution was thrown on lap 264. A heated confrontation on the track between David Gilliland and Juan Pablo Montoya erupted. NASCAR felt Gilliland wrecked Montoya so NASCAR penalized him five laps for a safety violation and then parked him. The NAPA team used the caution to make additional adjustments that included more air pressure and wedge. The service also included the addition of fuel and four tires. It took just 12 seconds to complete. Waltrip returned to the track in 27th place.
The race went back to green on lap 269. Shortly into the run, Waltrip believed the adjustments made the car worse. However, as the laps ticked away, his car was once again turning fast lap times. On lap 298, he was as fast as Edwards. Then, with less than 20 laps to go, teams started to make stops for fuel. The NAPA team serviced its car on lap 327 for just two seconds of gas to allow Waltrip to make it to the end in 27th position.
“The one thing that did go well for us today was our performance in the pits,” Waltrip added. “My guys did an excellent job. Our stops were fast. We’ve got two more races to go, and I’m looking forward to closing out the season with my guys with two good finishes.”
Edwards domination of the Dickies 500 resulted in his second-straight victory and eighth of the season. He remains second in the championship points standings, just 106 markers behind Jimmie Johnson. Meanwhile, rounding out the top-10 finishers were Jeff Gordon, Jamie McMurray, Clint Bowyer, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Matt Kenseth and Reutimann.
Waltrip’s new teammate, Marcos Ambrose, battled from an on-track mishap with Travis Kvapil to finish a very respectable 21st place.
The Sprint Cup teams head out west for next week’s 312-lap race at Phoenix International Raceway. Broadcast coverage starts at 3 p.m. Eastern on ABC and the Motor Racing Network.
Dickies 500 Race Results:
http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2008/34/data/results_unofficial.html
NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Standings (Waltrip – 29th):
NASCAR Sprint Cup Owner Points (Waltrip – 29th):
Lap By Lap:
http://www.nascar.com/2008/races/lapbylap/11/01/lap.by.lap.texas2/index.html
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