Germain.com Tundra Has Top-Five Performance with Top-15 Result in Phoenix
Mooresville, N.C. (02-28-2011) – On Friday, the No. 30 Germain.com Tundra team unleashed a new chassis setup on their Toyota truck for driver Todd Bodine. The setup came as a result of off-season testing and it seemed to work very well. Bodine qualified in the seventh position and spent more than 110 laps of the 77th Annual Lucas Oil 150 running in or near that same spot. Things changed for the team when the fifth caution of the night flew at lap 113 in the second NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race of the season.
“We probably unloaded our best Germain.com Tundra at Phoenix in three or four years,” said crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. “We had a great practice session, a good qualifying position and good pit stops. If we didn’t have the racing incident, we were a top-five truck.”
The Germain.com Tundra pit crew had some crash repair practice at the season opener in Daytona. At Phoenix , unfortunately, it was more of the same.
“We were able to bring the truck into the pits, get it repaired, and stay on the lead lap. The Germain.com Tundra took a pretty big hit, so, salvaging a 14th-place finish was a good result for us. We’re all looking ahead to Darlington ,” said Hillman.
After two of 25 races, Bodine ranks 12th in the Truck Series points standings. Bodine races the No. 30 Tundra next at Darlington Raceway on March 12th, where they will be defending their 2010 victory at the track “Too Tough to Tame.”
Follow Germain Racing on Twitter @GermainRacing or on the web at Germainracing.com or become a fan on Facebook: Facebook.com/pages/Germain-Racing/198863890135.
When shopping for your new or used car or truck, head directly to Germain.com to find the perfect vehicle or visit your local Germain dealer in Ohio , Florida , or Arkansas . Germain.com is part of Germain Motor Company, a top-25 automotive retail network with 21 dealerships and more than 60 years of experience.
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Gaughan Finishes 17th at PIR Mooresville, N.C. (02-28-2011) – Heading into the second race of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season, Brendan Gaughan and his No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino team were excited about the possibilities of racing at Phoenix International Raceway. Gaughan qualified 12th and raced among the top-15 trucks for much of the 150-lap event.
“When race time came, the South Point Hotel & Casino Tundra was very loose getting into the corners. We were able to make some adjustments on the first pit stop that helped Brendan, but we lost some track position and it was hard to make it up on Friday night,” said crew chief Bryan Berry.
Gaughan was in the top-15 for most of the night and in the final 40 laps, he began working his way toward the top-ten before ending the night with a 17th-place finish.
“I think we had a truck that was a top-ten Tundra, but the brush with the wall on lap 129 took us off the lead lap,” explained Berry .
Brendan Gaughan is currently 19th in Truck Series points standings. His next Truck Series race is March 12th, at Darlington Raceway.
Gaughan holds eight Truck Series victories to go along with his two K&N Pro Series West championship titles. Follow Gaughan at www.BrendanGaughan.com or on Twitter @Brendan62.
Germain Racing has earned two championship titles in the Truck Series. The Toyota team owns 22 victories and 9 pole awards in the series that continues to grow ratings on SPEED. For more information on Germain Racing, visit www.GermainRacing.com or follow the team on Twitter @GermainRacing.
About South Point…The South Point (http://www.SouthPointCasino.com) is a 2,200-room resort in Las Vegas , Nevada providing affordable luxury while catering to visitors and locals alike. This casino destination features a world-class spa, bowling center, eight restaurants, showroom, equestrian arena, convention center, exhibit hall, bingo and all of the casino games that made Las Vegas famous. The South Point opened in December 2005.
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Max Papis Avoids Late-Race Cautions to Bring Home Top-15 at Phoenix
AVONDALE, Ariz. (February 25, 2011) – One week after crossing the finish line in 12th-place at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Max Papis and the No. 9 GEICO Racing team trekked cross country to compete at Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway, the second stop of the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season. Numerous late race cautions plagued the field, but Papis used patience to bring home a solid 15th-place finish in the Arizona desert.
A normal schedule occurrence saw the Truck Series complete a one-day show on Friday, as practice, qualifying and the race all took place during the same day at the one-mile track. After dialing in the GEICO Toyota in the morning practice session, Papis laid down a respectable lap in qualifying to start the 150-mile race from the 18th position.
The beginning of the Lucas Oil 150 saw the 36-truck field complete laps under green-flag conditions. As Papis faced a loose handling Tundra, the Italian slipped back a few spots in the first 30 laps and was placed one lap down to the leaders. The yellow flag was displayed on lap 43, with the Gecko holding 22nd-place. Crew chief Randy Goss called his driver to pit road for four fresh tires, fuel, and adjustments to help tighten up the Toyota . Restarting on lap 49 from 23rd-place, Papis began fighting for the Lucky Dog award.
The second caution of the night was brought out on lap 59, with Papis in 22nd-place, two spots shy of receiving the Lucky Dog award to return to the lead lap. Papis reported to his GEICO crew that the adjustments made on the first pit stop helped but he was still loose. Remaining on the track, Papis restarted on lap 63 from the same position. Another 40 lap green-flag period ensued as Papis continued to run strong in the 22nd position.
On lap 101, the third caution slowed the pace, sparking a string of six cautions in 40 laps. Goss radioed for Papis to come back to pit road for the final stop of the evening, taking four fresh tires and fuel. Continuing to dodge accidents in front of his GEICO Toyota, Papis swerved and swayed to break into the top-20 by lap 119. Showing extreme patience and driving skills, the driver’s break finally came on lap 133 as he received the Lucky Dog award and regained his position on the lead lap.
The green flag waved for the final time on lap 140, setting up a 10-lap shootout in the Valley of the Sun. With six laps remaining, Papis battled his way into 15th-place. Never looking back, Papis crossed the finish line and recorded his second consecutive top-15 finish. Papis continues to hold the eighth position in the Camping World Truck Series Driver Championship Point Standings, only 10 points behind leader Matt Crafton.
“We battled hard tonight to get that Top 15 finish for GEICO and Germain Racing. We took what the day gave us and we will move forward to the next race in Darlington ,” Papis said. “I was able to stay out of trouble and we are getting better one lap at a time. We’re 8th in the point standings and just ten points out of first place, so we are in a good place and we are going to keep fighting and getting better each race.”
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will return to Darlington Raceway on Saturday, March 12. The Too Tough To Tame 200 will be broadcast on SPEED Channel, Sirius-XM NASCAR Radio and MRN Radio beginning at 5:00 p.m. EST.
Visit www.twitter.com/GEICORacing http://www.twitter.com/GEICORacing for news and updates throughout the weekend. -PMI- Throttle Stop Issue Slows Lofton in Phoenix // February 28th, 2011 Phoenix International Raceway is one of Justin Lofton’s favorite race tracks. He entered the event weekend with high hopes at the one-mile facility, but an issue with his No. 77 Lofton Cattle Toyota Tundra early into the Lucas Oil 150 on Friday night left him with a 30th place finish.
“It’s disappointing because I had some family come from California and I always look forward to racing here. I knew something wasn’t right pretty early, but it is something that gradually gets worse and you can’t tell right off what it is,” Lofton said. “Once we figured it out, the truck ran pretty good. We’ll shake it off this week and be back at it in Darlington .”
At the start of the race, Lofton dropped his No. 77 Toyota to the rear of the field after the crew made adjustments to the truck following qualifying. Initially, Lofton grabbed the 24th starting spot. With just under 20 laps on the board however, the 25-year-old radioed to crew chief Ryan Fugle that the truck seemed sluggish on the front stretch.
Shortly after the race hit the lap 40 mark, the first yellow flag of the night waved, allowing Lofton to make a trip down pit road. The crew raised the hood, investigating the problem. The field returned to green flag conditions, but the Lofton Cattle machine remained on pit road. While looking their machine over, the crew found that the throttle stop backed out, fixed the problem, and sent Lofton back on track.
Despite rejoining the race with a 10 lap deficit, Lofton did his job, running a clean race and clicking off lap times that equaled other trucks within the top-10. On lap 104 Fugle and Lofton agreed to drop to the rear of the field following a restart, since “cautions breed cautions.” And they were right. Five more caution flags waved during the course of the final 40 laps. Spotter Mark Green called Lofton through the action, allowing the California native to drive his Toyota home to a 30th place finish.
After a week off the No. 77 Lofton Cattle crew will next head to Darlington Raceway on March 12th
