Camry driver Kyle Busch (second) was the highest finishing Toyota in Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) race at Dover International Speedway.
David Reutimann (fifth) and Kenny Wallace (seventh) also earned top-10 finishes for Toyota.
Camry driver Joey Logano, who was running second, was involved in an accident on the final restart that ended the race and he finished 13th.
Camry drivers Steve Wallace (16th), Ryan Truex (18th), Joe Nemechek (19th), Michael Annett (20th) and Brian Scott (30th) were also in the field.
Six Camry drivers are currently in the top-20 in the unofficial NNS point standings following 11 of 35 races in the 2011 season — K. Wallace (seventh), Scott (eighth), S. Wallace (ninth), Nemechek (12th), Annett (13th) and Truex (17th).
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 MAC Tools Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position: 2nd Did you see the accident on the final restart? “I didn’t really want that kind of view. It’s going to take an awful lot of MAC Tools and Stanley Tools to beat the front end out of this thing. Luckily, we just cut it off and start over. It was a long day for us. We didn’t quite have the car we needed today, unfortunately this weekend. We kept working on it, trying to make it the best we could. The nose damage we had from earlier in the race coming to pit road just killed it. The guys did a good job and we just salvaged along and somehow we ended up second. We didn’t deserve to be second here, that’s for sure. Sometimes they get to you. I saw Joey (Logano) get out — I’m glad to see Joey is alright. I don’t know about Clint (Bowyer), but I hope he’s good, too. That was a wicked hit that Joey took in the turn four wall and then him getting climbed over. It’s good that the front bumpers and the front tires on these cars didn’t come through and hit Joey’s head — the seat or something like that — it could have been really bad. I’m just glad everyone is alright. We salvaged the day with our MAC Tools Camry. Unfortunately, it wasn’t our best, but maybe we can get the m in Charlotte.”
How wild was the race finish? “It was definitely a wild one there at the end. We had a struggling day to begin with our MAC Tools Camry. We just didn’t quite have the handle like we were looking for. Joey (Logano) seemed pretty good. There at the end, coming off the corner, I don’t know if someone got into him or what, that’s kind of what it looked like. Joey took an awful hard hit coming out of turn four on that wall. Then Clint (Bowyer) climbed over him. Luckily Clint’s bumper, tire or shrapnel didn’t get into his head or something like that and cause some serious damage to him. It was a rough day.”
How much did the track change during the race? “I think the biggest change we had was just knocking the nose in coming to pit road — that seemed to kill the handling of our car. We did the best we could trying to get it loosened up and trying to get it where we could run with those guys and get some speed out of it, but we just did not. We didn’t get anywhere today. I hate it, but we came out with a second somehow — I don’t know how that ended up. We’ll take it and we’ll move on into our next race with our Z-Line Designs Camry in Charlotte.”
Did you think the late cautions helped you close in on the leaders? “During the race there, throughout the beginning and the middle stages before we got our damage, we were probably a third or fourth-place car. It was going to be hard to get a third. A good fourth-place car. When I got that damage, it put us back to about a seventh or eighth-place car, but we kept working on it and trying to see if we couldn’t get our track position back somehow. There with the late caution, it definitely helped us. We were going to finish sixth. I think that’s where we were in line. With those late cautions and with the wrecking going on, it brought us up to second-place — so we got a second out of the deal somehow. On those kinds of days, I guess you take them. It’s pretty cool to get a finish like that even though we didn’t’ deserve it.”
DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 64 5-Hour Energy Extra Strength Toyota Camry, Rusty Wallace Racing Finishing Position: 5th
KENNY WALLACE, No. 09 G-Oil Toyota Camry, RAB Racing with Brack Maggard Finishing Position: 7th
JOEY LOGANO, No. 20 GameStop Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position: 13th What happened at the end of the race? “It just seemed like I either got tagged or I think just Carl (Edwards) coming up took the air off me enough to make me loose. I just think (watching a replay of the accident) — see I think he’s coming up the track. Those shark fins they got them — you get a car underneath you right about that point you feel the car starting to get loose. It’s unfortunate man. I felt like we had something to win this thing with the GameStop car. We had a good day, for sure. Just trying to get that little bit there at the end. Wish we didn’t tear up as many cars as we did.”
How are you feeling? “I’m fine.” Can you explain what you experienced at the end of the race? “It just looks like Carl (Edwards) was underneath me and he was starting to chase it up the race track. And, it just looked like he was in that spot — that vulnerable spot — right where it seems like it takes the air off your car a little bit and pushes you around. It’s not his fault. It’s just part of us racing really hard hear at the end. I didn’t get spun out. It’s just part of it. It’s just the way these cars are when you get someone underneath you like that it pushes you around.”
Did you see what happened to Clint Bowyer? “All I saw was the underside of him. I saw the underneath of it and I was like, ‘Holy cow.’ It seemed like I got loose and I tried to catch it and overcorrected it into the fence. I come off the fence and the 33 (Clint Bowyer) ramped off my left rear, I think. He went for a heck of a ride. I’m glad to see Clint’s (Bowyer) okay.”
Did Carl Edwards say anything to you following the race? “He just apologized. I don’t think he knew if he hit me or not either. I’m still not sure if he touched me or not. It was just tough racing.”
STEVE WALLACE, No. 66 5-Hour Energy Toyota Camry, Rusty Wallace Racing Finishing Position: 16th
RYAN TRUEX, No. 99 Toyota Camry, Pastrana-Waltrip Racing Finishing Position: 18th
JOE NEMECHEK, No. 87 Toyota Camry, NEMCO Motorsports Finishing Position: 19th
MICHAEL ANNETT, No. 62 Pilot/Flying J Toyota Camry, Rusty Wallace Racing Finishing Position: 20th
BRIAN SCOTT, No. 11 Shore Lodge Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position: 30th What happened on the race track to end your race? “Got a little free on the restart and it got out from under me, I tried to save it without getting into the car on the outside of me and I just lost it. The worst deal is for everybody on the No. 11 team and everybody at Joe Gibbs Racing. We’ve had a rough year so far and we were looking to rebound here. A lot of the problems and bad luck we’ve had have not been our fault and now this was a driver’s self-induced problem that looks like it ruined our day and tore up a race car. I have to apologize to my guys and everybody at Joe Gibbs Racing.”
