A TUMS “FightS back fast”MOMENT
(For each of the 36 races during the 2011 Sprint Cup season, TUMS has provided a brief historical recap of a moment when a team fought back to overcome an obstacle, one that can easily be described as a TUMS “Fights Back Fast” Moment. This week, the focus is on Homestead-Miami Speedway and the final race of the season).
BOBBY LABONTE GETS UNEXPECTED WIN AT HOMESTEAD-MIAMI
The date was Nov. 16, 2003. Bobby Labonte battled hard but was no match for Bill Elliott in the Ford 400. All Labonte could do was watch Elliott control the race, leading 189 of the 267-lap event in the potent Evernham Motorsports Dodge. NOTE: TUMS is the sponsor of the TUMS Fast Relief 500, the seventh race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, at Martinsville Speedway on October 30.
Labonte radioed his crew that Elliott was “playing with everyone” because he was so strong. As the field took the white flag for the final lap, Labonte was ready to settle for second. But as Elliott exited the second turn on the final lap, his right rear tire gave up, forcing the Georgia driver to slow. Labonte took advantage of the opportunity to steal the win away. The only lap Labonte led was the final circuit, the lap that mattered most.
“I honestly thought I can’t win unless something happens. And lo and behold, something happened,” Labonte said. “You don’t ever give up. I think our never give up attitude happened from the first lap until the end.”
As Elliott reached for a TUMS, Labonte fought back fast to capture a hard-earned win.
