RCR Post Race Report — Daytona 500 and NextEra Energy Resources 250
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
RACE: Daytona 500
TRACK: Daytona International Speedway
DATE: February 20, 2011
Race Highlights:
RCR drivers finished ninth (Paul Menard), 17th (Clint Bowyer), 36th (Jeff Burton) and 42nd (Kevin Harvick) in the 2011 Daytona 500
RCR drivers led a total of 19 times for a combined 52 laps – 31 (Bowyer), 11 (Menard), five (Burton) and five (Harvick)
Menard earned his best career finish to date of ninth
Bowyer posted the best average running position of 8.6
The last time Burton wasn’t running at the end of the Great American Race was in 2004
Harvick suffered his first DNF due to an engine failure since September 2006, a span of 152 races
The event produced a race-record 74 lead changes among 22 drivers
16 cautions for a total of 60 laps were produced
Trevor Bayne claimed the win with Carl Edwards, David Gilliland, Bobby Labonte and Kurt Busch rounding out the top five
Bayne also earned the honors of being the youngest Daytona 500 winner (20 years and one day)
Paul Menard and the No. 27 PEAK/Menards Team Collect Top-10 Honors in Daytona 500
Richard Childress Racing’s newest team showcased their talents at Daytona International Speedway and proved that they intend to be a force to be reckoned with by demonstrating a solid performance and bringing home a ninth-place finish in the 2011 Daytona 500. Menard lined up the No. 27 PEAK/Menards Chevrolet in the 19th position to kick off the “Great American Race.” With the first 11 laps slowed for two cautions, forward progress for the PEAK Impala was difficult; however, following the second yellow flag, the Eau Claire, Wis., native found a drafting partner in Tony Stewart and the pair powered their Chevrolets to the front, taking the lead for the first time on lap 18. Menard remained inside the top 10 while drafting with a number of different drivers for the next 60 laps, falling out only once after a four-tire pit stop on lap 33. He found himself in the lead again on lap 37 while working with RCR teammate Clint Bowyer, and again on lap 52. Following a lap-77 visit to pit road while under the seventh caution of the afternoon, Menard was separated from his recent successful drafting partner and was shuffled backwards. Near the halfway point, he was reunited with Bowyer and the pair powered forward once again. Proving they were a forceful combination, they charged into the lead once again. Following the lap-182 caution, spotters scrambled to negotiate who-was-drafting-with-who for the final shootout. Separated from his teammate and without a solid dancing partner to work with, Menard found himself slipping out of the top 10. His position allowed him to navigate around a late-race incident that collected the front-running cars and set the stage for a green-white-checkered finish. In the final laps, Menard powered his No. 27 PEAK/Menards Chevrolet to a top-10 finish in the season opener.
Start – 19th Finish – 9th Laps Led – 11 Points – 8th
PAUL MENARD QUOTE:
“We had a really strong PEAK/Menards Chevrolet at Daytona. The guys have worked incredibly hard to prepare for this season and I think we have showed that since we’ve been down here. We were keeping a close eye on our temperatures after the (No.) 29 and (No.) 31 had engine problems. We ran a solid race and kept out of trouble. We ran well with Clint (Bowyer) and were able to lead laps today – just not the most important lap. The key was finding the right drafting partner, someone who had a strong car and who could work with you, swapping spots to keep the temperatures down. We had a several great drafting partners today; we just didn’t have that combination to keep us in the front at the end. I’m still very proud of our finish and look forward to the season with the No. 27 guys and my RCR teammates.”
Early Engine Failure Cuts Daytona 500 Short for Harvick, Budweiser Team
Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet team finished 42nd in the 53rd running of the Daytona 500 after an engine failure ended their day on lap 22. Prior to the engine problem, Harvick led twice for a total of five laps and had worked his way back into the top 15 after the team’s first pit stop at lap 12. The engine failure was the team’s first since September 2006 which occurred at Dover International Speedway, a span of 152 races.
Start – 9th Finish – 42nd Laps Led – 5 Points – 37th
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTE:
“Obviously, you come to the first race of the year and to have that happen right off the bat is just something you don’t really want to have happen and it’s just one of those things. We go years and years without engine failures and they (Earnhardt Childress Racing Engines) do a great job on that. So, it happens. The oil temperature was 10 – 15 degrees more than what we had been (running). I pulled out from behind the No. 17 (Matt Kenseth) when I felt like I got to the point where I needed to pull out, and the bottom fell out of it. I hate it for everybody on this Budweiser Chevrolet team and everybody from Jimmy Johns and Budweiser. It’s a tough way to start the year, but man, we never blow motors. Everybody at ECR does a great job.”
Rare Occurrence in Blown Engine Results in 36th-Place Finish for Burton, Cat Racing Team in Daytona 500
Jeff Burton and the No. 31 Caterpillar team showcased a strong performance in the first half of the 53rd running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, but eight laps shy of the race’s halfway mark, the engine expired in the extremely fast black and yellow machine that relegated the team to a 36th-place result. At the drop of the green flag, Burton and Richard Childress Racing teammate Clint Bowyer picked up where they left off from Thursday’s Duel 150 event, choosing each other as their dancing partner for much of the showdown’s first 92 laps. For the most part, they competed in the top 10, avoided multiple incidents and only dropped to as low as 24th the entire time. Burton led on two different occasions for a total of five laps on the 66th, 67th and 75th – 77th circuits before retiring the RCR entry to the garage 16 laps later when the engine broke – a rare occurrence that last happened in October 2007 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Start – 4th Finish – 36th Laps Led – 5 Points – 32nd
JEFF BURTON QUOTE:
“We are asking a lot out of the engines here for sure. These are tough situations. To run at all, you have to run them 240 (degrees) or so and that may be a little more than we need to be running. We thought we were well within our limits, but maybe not. But listen, I’m proud of everybody. This whole Cat Racing team busted their butt to come down here and put their best foot forward. We ran well all week and I am proud of everybody. I’m disappointed – exceptionally disappointed. But, I’m not going to hang my head. The effort was too good to be disappointed about.”
No. 33 Team Salvages 17th-Place Finish after Late-Race Incident at Daytona
After leading 11 times for 31 laps and being involved in a late-race incident with only four laps remaining, Clint Bowyer and the No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet team salvaged a 17th-place finish in the 53rd running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Rolling off the starting grid in the sixth position, Bowyer immediately hooked up with Richard Childress Racing teammate Jeff Burton and the two drivers found themselves a mainstay in the top 10 for the first part of the “Great American Race” until the caution flag flew on lap 29 for the infamous “big one”. Bowyer and Burton were then joined by RCR stablemate Paul Menard, who pushed Bowyer to lead his first lap of the day. The three RCR Chevrolets continued to run up front until Burton’s car retired near the halfway point after suffering engine problems. After that, Bowyer and Menard stayed close together in the running order and bounced throughout the top 15 until finally finding the right combination and working their way through the field, where the Emporia, Kan., native led a majority of laps. The two drivers were separated on the track and shuffled back throughout the field joining other competitors in three-wide packs. Bowyer worked his way back to the front with the help of the No. 18 car and, with only four laps to go, made a move on the outside for the lead while running third. However, contact between three cars in the inside lane caused a massive pileup on the backstretch of the 2.5-mile superspeedway, severely damaging the No. 33 car and eliminating any chances of bringing home the 2011 Harley J. Earl trophy. The Helping Hands pit crew managed to repair the car and get it back out for the last three laps of the event without losing a lap to the leaders, salvaging a 17th-place finish.
Start – 6th Finish – 17th Laps Led – 31 Points – 15th
CLINT BOWYER QUOTE:
“What can you say? It was just one of those racing deals. We had one of the best cars out there today and got caught up in someone else’s mess. To tell you the truth, I still don’t know what happened. It was all so fast. Shane (Wilson, crew chief) called a great race today and, once again, we were right there at the end.”
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
RACE: NextEra Energy Resources 250
TRACK: Daytona International Speedway
DATE: February 18, 2011
Race Highlights:
Austin Dillon led the field to the green flag after earning his eighth career pole award on Thursday evening.
Dillon’s No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet did not fall outside of the top five until an incident with just four laps remaining ended the team’s night early.
Joey Coulter started eighth in his first NASCAR national touring series start and, along with Dillon (pole), was one of nine Chevrolets to start the race in the top-10.
RCR teammates finished 20th (Dillon) and 34th (Coulter).
Michael Waltrip earned his first NCWTS victory and became the 22nd driver to post wins in all three of NASCAR’s national touring series. He was followed to the finish line by Elliott Sadler, Clay Rogers, Miguel Paludo and Kyle Busch.
The next NCWTS race is a 150-miler at Phoenix International Raceway on Friday, February 25th, televised live on SPEED and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio beginning at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Standard
Late Race Multi-Car Incident Spoils Austin Dillon’s Shot at Daytona Victory
Austin Dillon and the Danny Stockman-led No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Team showcased the strength of Richard Childress Racing’s NCWTS program on Friday night at Daytona by earning the pole award and battling within the top three for much of the 250-mile race. Unfortunately, a late-race incident effectively eliminated any chances of finding Victory Lane and relegated the team to a disappointing 20th-place finish. Dillon was scored in the third position on lap 98 of 100 when a multi-car incident broke out just behind him. Another competitor made contact with the left-rear fender of the No. 3 Chevrolet and Dillon was turned into the outside retaining wall in the tri-oval. The 10-car incident left Dillon’s Chevrolet damaged beyond repair and brought out the red flag for just over 10 minutes. When racing resumed with just four laps remaining, Dillon was unable to continue and finished 20th.
Start – First Finish – 20th Points Position – 16th Laps Led – 0
AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:
“I felt like we were in the position we needed to be in. I had already been talking to (spotter) Andy (Houston) about what we were going to have to do on the white-flag lap. We were sitting third, and I felt like that was the spot to be in. It was just a struggle there at the end. I mean, it happens. It’s Daytona. I’m really upset for all these No. 3 fans.”
Blown Tire Relegates Coulter, No. 22 Team to 34th-Place Result at Daytona
Joey Coulter and the No. 22 RCR team showcased a strong Chevrolet Silverado in the opening laps of the NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona International Speedway, but an unexpected right-front blown tire just 37 laps in forced the Harold Holly-led crew to head to the garage and make repairs, resulting in a 34th-place finish. After rolling off the starting grid from the outside of row four, the Miami Springs, Fla., native flexed his rookie patience and held his own inside the top 15 in the opening 10 laps. He soon found himself boxed in behind a slower truck, and with nowhere to go, dropped to as low as 22nd on lap 12 before drafting his way back toward the front of the field. A brief fuel-only stint on pit road on lap 31 returned the Rookie-of-the-Year contender to eighth on the board. While running 13th in the draft six laps later, an unanticipated occurrence in the form of a blown tire directed the No. 22 RCR Chevrolet to the outer retaining wall, causing heavy damage to the right-side of the machine. After extensive repairs, Holly and his team were able to get Coulter back onto the race track with 25 laps remaining where the young driver ran at a safe, yet competitive, pace.
Start – Eighth Finish – 34th Points – 28th Laps Led – 0
JOEY COULTER QUOTES:
“I hate it that we had a tire blow out. The RCR Chevrolet Silverado was fast – credit goes out to Harold Holly (crew chief) and all the guys on the team. They did an amazing job getting the truck repaired as much as they could to get me back on the track. I wish we had better luck in starting the season but I’m looking forward to getting back in the truck at Phoenix.”
