Red Horse driver moves up to fifth in truck series standings
AVONDALE, Ariz. (Feb. 25, 2011) – Red Horse Racing driver Timothy Peters bounced back from a late-race spin to finish 12th in the Lucas Oil 150 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Phoenix International Raceway and move up to fifth in the series points standings.
Peters showed speed out of the No. 17 GearWrench Toyota Tundra from the start of the weekend, as he drove to third early in the long practice session at the 1-mile track. After making adjustments, crew chief Butch Hylton sent Peters out for a mock qualifying run in the closing laps of the practice, but Peters was blocked by another truck and had to abandon the fast run.
Peters then qualified 11th for the 150-lap race, which began as the sun was setting across the southern Arizona desert.
He moved into the top 10 in the opening laps of the race, though he was reporting the truck was tight entering the corners. Hylton made an air-pressure adjustment on the first pit stop on lap 43, and Peters continued to race in the top 10.
With 48 laps to go, Hylton made another air-pressure adjustment, and the Red Horse crew gained Peters two spots on pit road under a caution.
As he challenged another driver for sixth place on lap 123, Peters made contact with another truck and spun in Turn 2. He didn’t hit anything, but the tires were flat-spotted, and Peters headed to pit road for four tires.
Peters restarted 15th with 24 laps to go and gained three positions in the closing laps, even though he was racing on older tires because the team had used its allotment of fresh Goodyears.
“We had a decent truck all night long,” Peters said. “Our GearWrench Tundra was a little snug, but they got me right in the pits. Those guys do a great job in the pits.
“I just put us in a bad position (with the spin). The hole was open, and I went down, and it closed up pretty quick, and we spun out. It’s not what we wanted, but we had a good truck and we finished 12th, in one piece.”
Peters may have accepted the blame for the spin, though replays showed otherwise. Two trucks were racing for position ahead, and those two slowed as they exited Turn 2. That caused Justin Johnson to take evasive action, and it just happened to be to the low side, where Peters was making a move for position.
Still, with the finish of 12th, Peters managed to move up two positions to fifth in the Camping World Truck Standings. He has 66 points, five behind leader Matt Crafton and one behind fourth-place Johnny Sauter.
“We’ll go to Darlington and maybe make up for it there,” Peters said. “As far as I’m concerned, I got my worst track out of the way until we get to Loudon.”
TIMOTHY PETERS RACE SUMMARY
Starting position: 11th Finish position: 12th Laps led: 0 Laps completed: 150 of 150 Status: Running Points position: Fifth Race winner: Kyle Busch Pole winner: Clint Bowyer Next race: Too Tough To Tame 200, Darlington Raceway, Darlington, S.C., March 12
