TALLADEGA, Ala. (April 18, 2011) – – Brent Brevak, son of 1990 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards champion Bob Brevak had high hopes for his Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway debut this past weekend but unfortunately a series of misfortunes in the early stages of the postponed 3 Amigos 250 forced a different race strategy for the Brevak Racing team.
With faith and determination propelling the team to the 2.66-mile superspeedway after a tough outing in the season-opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Brevak had hopes to push his No. 3 Brevak Racing Ford Fusion into contention in the second race of the season.
In practice on Thursday, the No. 3 Brevak Racing Ford Fusion posted the 27th fastest run in single-car trim leaving the team optimistic for qualifying. A solid 25th place qualifying effort later that day gave the organization a better feeling towards the event.
Opting not to participate in the final practice, the family-owned team would shift their concentration into race mode. The team’s mode though would be halted when Mother Nature brought extensive rain and thunderstorms to the Talladega area forcing officials to reschedule the event until the next morning with an 8:00 a.m. start.
Refreshed, Brevak climbed aboard his machine thankful for the opportunity to race at one of the greatest spectacles on earth. When the green flag flown, Brevak showed patience and by lap six had climbed into the 21st position.
His steady climb to the front would be halted on lap 14 when a piece of debris caused the left front tire to go flat. Add insult to injury, the deflated tire also broke the sway bar which would haunt the 23-year old and his team for the remainder of the event. Slowly, Brevak was able to bring his blue oval to pit road for damage control.
With the tire changed, Brevak returned to the track three laps off the pace and was hoping that attrition would play into his favor and he could utilize the “free pass” times three to return to lead lap status. The yellow flag fever would never break closing in on half-way which kept Brevak gaining valuable experience but out of contention.
On lap 59, Brevak returned to pit road for an attempt to fix the sway bar but would gradually lose more laps to the leaders which take the team’s agenda from a good finish to a learning experience for their second-generation racer.
Through perseverance and some late attrition, Brevak would climb the running order and take the checkered flag in the 26th position, 10 laps off race winner Ty Dillon.
“It’s a shame that we had the flat tire then the sway bar issue,” offered Brevak after the race. “We had a decent car that with the right group would draft well. We were just keeping our nose clean and waiting for the right opportunity to fire away. Sadly, we never were able to get there. I want to thank everyone on the team and all of those who support us for getting our team to Talladega. We’ll try again soon.”
Despite the hardships, the finish was a career-best for Brevak in five prior ARCA Racing Series start. Previously, Brevak had finished a career-best 28th at Salem (Ind.) Speedway last year.
Pending sponsorship, Brevak Racing may attempt the next ARCA Racing Series event on the circuit at the tricky Salem (Ind.) Speedway on Sunday, May 1 for the running of the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200.
Brevak Racing encourages their fans and supporters to check out their official Brevak Racing Group Facebook page where you can find more about the team and the “Ride Along With Brent” fan participation program.
For more on Brevak Racing, please visit brevakracing.com http://www.brevakracing.com/ .
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