|
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – The season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway did not go as planned for driver Michael Waltrip and the NAPA Racing team. The team opted to put the exact same set-up as pole sitter and teammate David Reutimann had under the hood of the No. 55 machine. Unfortunately, it did not produce favorable results as Waltrip took the checkered flag in 38th place.
“I want to thank my entire team for all the work they have done for me this entire season,” said Waltrip, who started the race in 42nd place after a mishap in qualifying. “We took a big chance today going with Reutimann’s set-up. I would have regretted it if we would not have tried it. It was my idea and I am sorry it did not work out. NASCAR is getting rid of testing all together next year so I saw this race as an opportunity to try something new without losing too much if it did not work out. We definitely learned a lot tonight. What I learned is it’s not about who drives what car. It’s about the driver and setting the car up for the driver.”
Michael Waltrip Racing’s David Reutimann scored the first Coors Light pole award of his career on Friday. On Sunday, he led the 43-car field to the green flag and was able to keep a top-five pace for most of the race while the NAPA team struggled and went two laps down to then leader, Carl Edwards, by the 100-lap mark. Despite the challenges, the team made significant changes to the NAPA Camry on laps 50, 72 and 126. Spring rubber, shocks, air pressure and track bar adjustments were completed to help improve the car’s balance.
At halfway, the NAPA Camry still was not quite right when it came to the overall balance. However, when it came to speed, Waltrip’s car was becoming faster. The chance to make more improvements took place under caution on laps 151 and 168. The NAPA Toyota was no longer last on the chart, but it came at the expense of teammate Marcos Ambrose, who desperately needed a good points night to stay in the top 35 in owner points. His chances were diminished when he brought out the fourth caution of the night after hitting the wall.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think we would be running last due to handling,” added Waltrip. “It just shows you how temperamental these cars are if you don’t get it right. We were faster when we unloaded, but we had to try this set-up to see if it would work for me, too.”
Two more caution flags were thrown on laps 198 and 207. The NAPA crew went back to work and made an air pressure and wedge change to help loosen up Waltrip’s Toyota off the corners. Then, on their final stop on lap 210, it was fuel only.
The race restarted for the final time on lap 211. The No. 55 was 39th and Matt Kenseth was the leader. Waltrip was able to pick up one more position thanks to Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s bearing problem that put him behind the wall.
However, when it came to finishing first, it was Carl Edwards who was able to complete the Homestead sweep. He backed up his Nationwide victory with the Cup win. Both NASCAR Series’ saw Edwards come up short in the championship standings by only a few points.
Rounding out the top-10 finishers in the final event of 2008 were Kevin Harvick, Jamie McMurray, Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Travis Kvapil, Casey Mears, Tony Stewart and Martin Truex Jr.
Jimmie Johnson won his third-straight Sprint Cup championship by finishing 15th, becoming only the second driver in the history of NASCAR to complete the feat. He joins driver Cal Yarborough.
Meanwhile, Michael Waltrip Racing’s David Reutimann ended up 20th and Marcos Ambrose limped home to 42nd place.
“We learned a lot this year,” Waltrip stated. “My team is smarter and I’m smarter after the year we have experienced. We may not have run as well as we would have liked, but we stayed ahead of the No. 22 Toyota and that means we’ll get extra track time in Florida.”
Homestead - Miami 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race Results:
Homestead – Miami 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Lap-By-Lap:
http://www.nascar.com/2008/races/lapbylap/11/15/lap.by.lap.homestead/index.html
NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Standings (Waltrip – 29th):
NASCAR Sprint Cup Owner Standings (Waltrip – 29th):
|
