RCR Post Race Report – NNS OneMain Financial 200

RCR Post Race Report

NASCAR Nationwide Series

OneMain Financial 200

Dover International Speedway

September 29, 2012

Race Highlights:

Richard Childress Racing teammates finished second (Paul Menard), fourth (Elliott Sadler) and 10th (Austin Dillon).

Sadler leads the NASCAR Nationwide Series driver championship point standings by nine points over Ricky Stenhouse Jr., while Dillon ranks third in the standings, 25 markers behind his RCR teammate.

The No. 2 team ranks second in the Nationwide Series owner championship point standings, trailing the No. 18 team by 21 points, with the No. 3 team fourth in the standings and the No. 33 team fifth.

Dillon leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings over Cole Whitt.

According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Statistics, the RCR drivers ranked second (Menard), fifth (Sadler) and sixth (Dillon) in the category for Fastest Drivers Late in a Run.

Combined, the RCR drivers posted the Fastest Laps Run for 28 circuits.

Each of the RCR drivers spent 100 percent of the race running in the top 15.

Menard led the field in Green Flag Passes with 47 and was second-Fastest on Restarts, with an average restart speed of 144.825 mph.

Sadler ranked second in the Closers category, advancing four positions in the final 10 percent of the race, and ranked fifth in Quality Passes with 14.

Dillon ranked second in Green Flag Passes with 46 and ranked fifth in Average Running Position (6.460).

Joey Logano earned his seventh Nationwide Series win of 2012, crossing the finish line ahead of Menard, Michael Annett, Sadler and Kyle Busch.

The next scheduled Nationwide Series race is the Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday, Oct. 12. The 28th race of the 2012 season is scheduled to be televised live on ESPN beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on Performance Racing Network.

Elliott Sadler Notches Fourth-Place Finish in the OneMain Financial 200

Elliott Sadler and the No. 2 OneMain Financial team scored a fourth-place finish Saturday in the OneMain Financial 200 at Dover International Speedway. Taking the green flag from the fourth position, Sadler worked his way around the “Monster Mile” in the top five until the competition caution on lap 45. Crew chief Luke Lambert called the Emporia, Va., native down pit road for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment, but an issue with the right-front tire delayed the team getting back on the track. Restarting in the 11th position on lap 49, Sadler reported the Chevrolet developed a loose-handling condition as he was shuffled to the 13th spot. The Richard Childress Racing driver moved into the top 10 by lap 141, running lap times faster than the leader. The final caution period of the event fell on lap 176, with Lambert instructing Sadler not to pit. On the restart on lap 181, Sadler worked his way from eighth to fourth. The driver held off a charge from behind to take the checkered flag in the fourth position for the team’s 13th top-five finish of the season. Sadler sits atop the NASCAR Nationwide Series driver championship point standings by nine points over Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Start – 4 Finish – 4 Laps Led – 0 Points – 1

ELLIOTT SADLER QUOTE:

“I am so proud of the OneMain Financial team. We fought a loose-handling race car for most of the day, but Luke Lambert (crew chief) made great calls to work on the Chevrolet throughout the race. We would have loved to bring home a win in front of all the OneMain Financial guests at Dover (International Speedway) today, but a solid finish is what we needed.”

Austin Dillon Posts Top-10 Finish at Dover International Speedway

Austin Dillon posted a 10th-place finish after running within the top three for a majority of the OneMain Financial 200 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover International Speedway in the No. 3 AdvoCare Chevrolet. Dillon qualified 10th for the 200-lap event and struggled with a loose-handling condition on the No. 3 Chevrolet in the opening laps of the race. A competition caution on lap 45 provided crew chief Danny Stockman the opportunity to call his driver down pit road for a chassis adjustment to combat the loose-handling condition. Restarting from the eighth position, the car’s handling was dramatically improved on the ensuing run, and Dillon spent the remainder of the race running within the top five. Dillon was scored in the third position for a restart with approximately 20 laps remaining. The driver in the car in front of him spun his tires when the green flag was displayed, causing Dillon to lose track position and fall to 12th in the running order. Dillon drove up to 10th for the race’s finish and remains third in the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings, 25 markers shy of the lead.

Start – 9 Finish – 10 Laps Led – 0 Points – 3

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE: “It’s disappointing to run as strong as we did today and finish 10th. It could have been a great points day for the AdvoCare team, but I am happy to have the opportunity to race and be able to contend out there today. We will take this off weekend to regroup and be ready to have a good finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway in two weeks.”

Paul Menard and the No. 33 Rheem/Menards Team Claim Runner-Up Finish in NASCAR Nationwide Series Race at Dover International Speedway

Paul Menard drove the No. 33 Rheem/Menards Chevrolet to a second-place finish in the NASCAR Nationwide Series OneMain Financial 200 at Dover International Speedway on Saturday afternoon. Starting the 200-lap event from the 10th position, the Eau Claire, Wis., native did not fall out of the top 10 despite battling a loose-handling condition. Crew chief Ernie Cope called for a series of chassis and air pressure adjustments throughout routine pit stops under caution on laps 47 and 118 to combat the handling challenges. During the final restart on lap 181, Menard lined up in the fourth position and jumped to second place when the outside line surged forward. He spent the closing laps chasing down the leader but had to settle for the runner-up finish, bringing home third top five in six Nationwide Series starts this season.

Start – 10 Finish – 2 Laps Led – 0 Owner Points – 5

PAUL MENARD QUOTE:

“Ernie (Cope, crew chief) and the No. 33 Rheem/Menards team did a great job this weekend. I hit the splitter pretty hard during qualifying so it was hard to tell what the car was going to do during the race. We fired off a little tight and then got loose as the runs progressed. We made good adjustments today and had a really strong afternoon in the pits. Unfortunately, once the No. 18 got out ahead of us on that last restart, we just didn’t have enough laps to catch him.”