Richmond International Raceway
Virginia 529 College Savings 250
September 9, 2011
No. 20 Notes of Interest
-Ryan Truex qualified 11th for Friday’s race, but had to drop back to 42nd to start the race due to an ignition problem with the No. 20 at the command to start engines. The Joe Gibbs Racing team quickly fixed the issue and was able to get him out before the green flag.
-Truex wheeled the No. 20 Schick Xtreme3 Toyota from the back of the pack into the top-20 only 25 laps into the race. His crew chief, Adam Stevens, kept Truex calm by reminding him they had plenty of time to get to the front and told him to take care of his equipment. He broke into the top-15 by Lap 60.
-Carl Edwards was good on the long runs, but a series of cautions in the middle of the race allowed Kyle Busch to have a taste of the lead on the restarts. It also gave Truex an opportunity to break into the top-10 by Lap 83.
-With 75 laps to go, Truex battled side-by-side with the No. 16 of Trevor Bayne for the 7th position. By holding his preferred bottom line, he was able to make it as high as 3rd with 30 laps to go and protected 4th position from Kenny Wallace for the remainder of the race.
-The 4th place finish marked Truex’s 2nd top-10 in the Nationwide Series, the other also coming at Richmond, earlier this year.
-Truex will be behind the wheel of the No. 20 next week in Chicago. He is also scheduled to drive at Dover, Kansas and Phoenix. While partial sponsorship has been announced, opportunities for partnership still exist.
Ryan Truex on Fighting Back from 42nd
“It helps so much when you’ve got a good car. These guys at Joe Gibbs Racing work so hard and they build such great race cars. It’s a pleasure to be able to drive them and be out there racing with these guys. We had to start off from 42nd, and I just took my time. I was patient. I made my way up to the front. We had an awesome car. I can’t thank these guys enough.”
Truex on his First Top-5 Finish
“It was crazy. I just can’t thank these guys enough for giving me such a good car. This is my first top-5 and to have Schick Xtreme3 onboard and everybody here is so cool. I’m having a lot of fun out here and I want to thank everybody for sticking behind me. To get a reward like this is just really nice.”
Truex on Car Handling and Tire Strategy
“In the long runs, we were really good and it was just from me saving the right rear the whole beginning of the run. We weren’t the fastest car in the short runs, and the car was somewhat loose, but as we would run and keep making laps, we would start catching those guys and they would all come back to us. I think I learned a lot, and tonight helped me a lot with tire strategy and being able to save my stuff.”
Race Notes
-Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Kyle Busch, won the Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond International Raceway by .696 seconds over Carl Edwards.
-Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished 3rd, and Kenny Wallace rounded out the Top 5.
-JGR teammate, No. 11 Brian Scott, finished 32nd due to an accident on Lap 147 with No. 88
Time of race: 2:03:45
Cautions: 6 for 48 laps
Lead changes: 10
Attendance: 38,000
Race Results
1. Kyle Busch
2. Carl Edwards
3. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
4. Ryan Truex
5. Kenny Wallace
6. Elliott Sadler
7. Aric Almirola
8. Reed Sorenson
9. Justin Allgaier
10. Joe Nemechek
11. Michael Annett
12. Mike Bliss
13. David Stremme
14. Jeremy Clement
15. Mike Wallace
16. Steve Wallace
17. Timmy Hill
18. Danica Patrick
19. Brad Keselowski
20. Kevin Harvick
*32. Brian Scott
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