Peters drove a consistent race and brought home another solid finish which helped him earn additional points and gain some ground in the point standings.
AVONDALE, AZ. (Nov 12)– Timothy Peters knew time was running out as he walked into the garage at Phoenix International Raceway. The track had been his Achilles heal just one year ago but this time he need a good run to meet his goal of a top-five finish in the season ending driver point standings. The #17 Red Horse Racing team put their nose to the grind stone and worked hard in two practice sessions on Thursday to give Peters a truck he could win with. He put the #17 in the sixth starting spot on Friday afternoon and prepared for the second to last race of the 2010 season. During the 150-lap event, Peters ran competitive lap times despite battling a loose condition. His “never give up” attitude helped him overcome the obstacles and capture a 13th place finish. He is now 73 points out of the fifth spot in the driver point standings. Aware of the uphill battle he faces in the season finale event, Peters will not rest until he has tried his best to get there.
The #17 team used two practice sessions on Thursday afternoon to prepare their Toyota Tundra for the Lucas Oil 150 under the lights at Phoenix International Raceway. Peters learned even more about the track and the crew worked to give him a set-up that would be fast on Friday night. Peters put his machine in the sixth starting spot on Friday afternoon and mentally prepared himself for the race.
When the green flag dropped in Phoenix, Peters was anxious to make his way to the front. He was still running in the sixth spot when the first caution of the night flew on lap 16. Peters reported that his Tundra was a little free everywhere on the race track. Crew chief Jeff Hensley made a plan to have his driver hit pit road but changed his mind when the leaders opted to stay out.
Peters restarted sixth on lap 23 but by lap 46 had slipped back to the eighth spot, battling with that loose condition. Another caution flew on lap 52 and Peters told his team the balance was still as bad as before. He hit pit road on lap 54 for four fresh tires, fuel, and to allow the team to pull a rubber out of the right rear. He restarted from the ninth spot.
Racing three wide at times to gain position, Peters was being cautiously aggressive in his effort to find the front. Another caution came out on lap 60 and Peters told the team that his truck wasn’t working well on the bottom groove of the race track but that the balance of his Tundra had improved with the last adjustment. He continued to run ninth but reported a change in the condition of his truck on lap 79. Peters told the team it was tight in the center of turns three and four but loose off of turn two. Another caution came out on lap 88 and the #17 pulled back onto pit road on lap 91. Taking four fresh tires and fuel only, Peters lined up 12th for the restart
Working his way to 11th on the same lap as the restart, Peters lost his momentum and fell back to 13th one lap later. He slipped back to 15th by lap 97 and then started moving forward again, clawing his way back to the 13th spot on lap 101. A caution flag flew on lap 113 and Peters told the team he was having trouble keeping the back end of the truck in the race track. He restarted 12th on lap 118 but fell to 13th on lap 126. With just under 25 laps remaining, Peters had his hands full with the condition of his truck. Unable to make any more progress before the checkered flag waved, Peters brought the #17 home in the 13th spot. He sits sixth in the driver point standings, 73 points behind fifth. With one race remaining, Peters will give it all he’s got at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads to Homestead, Florida this week. The Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway is scheduled for Friday, November 19th and will be televised live on SPEED Channel at 8:00pm EDT.
