Kansas Speedway - Camping World RV 400
Danni
RESULTS
1. Jimmie Johnson
13. Dale Jr.
19. David (1LD)
35. Michael (3LD)
It was a tough race for all three of our guys at Kansas. All weekend, analysts on the broadcasts acknowledged the difficulty of getting a balanced car on the flat 1.5 track. However, Kansas manages to produce good racing in spite of the field spreading out and the frequency of green pit stops.
I have to admit I was disappointed in Junior's run. From practice times and a prerace interview, I was under the impression that the car was going to be a good one. In reality, the #88 team fought it all day long - it was loose regardless of changes. At one point Junior drove into the top-10, but most of the day was spent just outside, as his finish shows. Being 190 points out of the championship is a daunting task when you're going up against Jimmie Johnson, but with Talladega coming up, you never know. On the positive side, Junior has been mentioning that he's trying to behave on the radio!
Good to hear!
Like Junior, David battled an ill-handling car - it sounded like the beginning of the year again! I was pretty upset since he had run so well at California (though that race is held at night). It was so tight at first that he couldn't even get past 30th and by Lap 50 he was overcome by the leaders. Huge adjustments ordered by Ryan and a fast pit stop by the #44 crew put David as the first lapped car in line on a subsequent restart. The team got another stroke of luck as well - the leader was Casey Mears, who stayed out on old tires. This enabled David to pass Casey and get his lap back without the free pass when the next caution flew.
From then on it was a fight into the top-20 despite going a lap down again. Although I'm used to better finishes (they make you spoiled, don't they?), I was proud of the diligence of the entire team.
Michael's day was a sadder story. He had a great car at the start of the race and powered into the top-20, where he remained for quite some time. Near the middle of the race, he began to contend with a worsening NAPA car and dropped to around 25th place. It was then that he got loose in front of David Ragan and was spun, collecting Sam Hornish in the melee. Under the following yellow, the crew tried to repair the car while not losing a lap. I wasn't comfortable with the shredded and jagged appearance of the left front fender and those fears were confirmed when twenty-six laps later the tire blew out. Michael managed not to crash exiting Turn 2, but unfortunately for him all the debris shot off the track and he was forced to pit under green.
The team rallied on to avoid a DNF, however, so that's something to be respected.
How about that finish! I was cheering for Jimmie and when I saw Carl coming like lightning I thought it was all over. The #48 team is so lucky Jimmie is calm and collected because I think a lot of other drivers would have lost their nerve in that situation. Even though I wasn't pulling for Carl, I'll give him credit for his effort! I couldn't believe the banzai move he tried in Turn 3! I really thought it was going to work until the car shot up the track and he slammed the wall. He must have been so disappointed, but even more so when he found out that he lost the championship lead to Jimmie by ten points too!
#44 Quotes of the Race
An incident on pit road messed up one of David's pit stops.
David: "Who the heck run over me coming into the pit box, anyway?"
Shawn: "The 8."
David (grumbling): "Every freakin' time we turn around something's happening like that." Pause. "He run into us and man, that frickin'... I went long. (indignantly) I was trying to stop short."
Ryan: "Ten-four. I didn't see it. I saw your car wiggle, I didn't see why you wiggled."
Shawn: "They were pushing him. Everybody was pushing each other down pit road."
David: "Okay, [they were] pushing, but don't get a running start!"
POINT STANDINGS
1. Jimmie Johnson
8. Dale Jr. -190
---
13. David Ragan
22. David -601 (-65 from 20th)
29. Michael -1070
1. Jimmie Johnson
13. Dale Jr.
19. David (1LD)
35. Michael (3LD)
It was a tough race for all three of our guys at Kansas. All weekend, analysts on the broadcasts acknowledged the difficulty of getting a balanced car on the flat 1.5 track. However, Kansas manages to produce good racing in spite of the field spreading out and the frequency of green pit stops.
I have to admit I was disappointed in Junior's run. From practice times and a prerace interview, I was under the impression that the car was going to be a good one. In reality, the #88 team fought it all day long - it was loose regardless of changes. At one point Junior drove into the top-10, but most of the day was spent just outside, as his finish shows. Being 190 points out of the championship is a daunting task when you're going up against Jimmie Johnson, but with Talladega coming up, you never know. On the positive side, Junior has been mentioning that he's trying to behave on the radio!
Good to hear!Like Junior, David battled an ill-handling car - it sounded like the beginning of the year again! I was pretty upset since he had run so well at California (though that race is held at night). It was so tight at first that he couldn't even get past 30th and by Lap 50 he was overcome by the leaders. Huge adjustments ordered by Ryan and a fast pit stop by the #44 crew put David as the first lapped car in line on a subsequent restart. The team got another stroke of luck as well - the leader was Casey Mears, who stayed out on old tires. This enabled David to pass Casey and get his lap back without the free pass when the next caution flew.
From then on it was a fight into the top-20 despite going a lap down again. Although I'm used to better finishes (they make you spoiled, don't they?), I was proud of the diligence of the entire team.Michael's day was a sadder story. He had a great car at the start of the race and powered into the top-20, where he remained for quite some time. Near the middle of the race, he began to contend with a worsening NAPA car and dropped to around 25th place. It was then that he got loose in front of David Ragan and was spun, collecting Sam Hornish in the melee. Under the following yellow, the crew tried to repair the car while not losing a lap. I wasn't comfortable with the shredded and jagged appearance of the left front fender and those fears were confirmed when twenty-six laps later the tire blew out. Michael managed not to crash exiting Turn 2, but unfortunately for him all the debris shot off the track and he was forced to pit under green.
The team rallied on to avoid a DNF, however, so that's something to be respected.How about that finish! I was cheering for Jimmie and when I saw Carl coming like lightning I thought it was all over. The #48 team is so lucky Jimmie is calm and collected because I think a lot of other drivers would have lost their nerve in that situation. Even though I wasn't pulling for Carl, I'll give him credit for his effort! I couldn't believe the banzai move he tried in Turn 3! I really thought it was going to work until the car shot up the track and he slammed the wall. He must have been so disappointed, but even more so when he found out that he lost the championship lead to Jimmie by ten points too!
#44 Quotes of the Race
An incident on pit road messed up one of David's pit stops.
David: "Who the heck run over me coming into the pit box, anyway?"
Shawn: "The 8."
David (grumbling): "Every freakin' time we turn around something's happening like that." Pause. "He run into us and man, that frickin'... I went long. (indignantly) I was trying to stop short."
Ryan: "Ten-four. I didn't see it. I saw your car wiggle, I didn't see why you wiggled."
Shawn: "They were pushing him. Everybody was pushing each other down pit road."
David: "Okay, [they were] pushing, but don't get a running start!"
POINT STANDINGS
1. Jimmie Johnson
8. Dale Jr. -190
---
13. David Ragan
22. David -601 (-65 from 20th)
29. Michael -1070
