Mike Wallace and the No. 01 SB Ballard Construction Chevrolet team of JD Motorsports w/Gary Keller completed all 250 laps in Friday night’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Richmond International Raceway. They even led two of them.
Race Summary: Starting the Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond International Raceway from the 13th position, Annett slipped back one spot in the early laps of the race and remained there until the first caution flag of the night flew on Lap 38.
MICHAEL ANNETT, No. 43 Pilot/Flying J Ford Mustang (Finished 5th) – “It was a good night. After practice I really thought tonight was going to be on the easier side actually. I thought we would run top-10 and get a top-five with ease because our car was so good in practice. The race started and we were completely the other way and I thought, ‘Oh no, what are we going to do?’
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. captured his first pole of 2012, setting the fastest lap today at Richmond International Raceway (RIR) for Saturday night's Federated Auto Parts 400.
4th, CLINT BOWYER 15th, KYLE BUSCH 6th, MARK MARTIN 29th, BOBBY LABONTE 7th, DENNY HAMLIN 32nd, TRAVIS KVAPIL 8th, JOEY LOGANO 34th, JOE NEMECHEK 9th, MARTIN TRUEX JR. 40th, MIKE BLISS 12th, LANDON CASSILL
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 DIET MOUNTAIN DEW/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET, POLE WINNER: ON HIS LAP: “It feels good. I’ve not really been the best of qualifiers the last couple of years. We have a lot of improvements we’ve made this year. It feels good to get a pole.”
Each race weekend, selected SRT Motorsports Engineers, Penske Racing engineers and crew chiefs, drivers or engine specialists give their insight on the ‘Keys for Success’ for the upcoming race. This week, Howard Comstock, SRT Motorsports Engineering, provides the keys for Saturday’s Sprint Cup race.
Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T) Qualified 10th WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED THAT WILL MAKE YOU BETTER IN THE CHASE THIS SEASON? “I think you’re always learning as a driver and the sport is always evolving so you try to keep up with it. One of the two things that stay the same is the pressure that the chase has and learn how to work around that. You know for us I think we’re more prepared for that than ever. I’ve got a good combination of youth and experience on our team, not just myself but our whole team, and we’re ready to go.”
CARL EDWARDS, No. 99 Kellogg’s Ford Fusion (Qualified 16th) – “One side of the track is sunny and one side is dark and I just messed up both sides a little bit. I think we have a really good race car and hopefully it will be top-12 or something like that. I think we will be just fine. I am excited about this race. The car was really fast in the last practice. In race trim, we were the fastest car in the last practice I think, so that is good.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing How was final practice? "This is the first time coming back here with the shorter skirts and I think it's got a little bit of an affect on the cars. I think everyone's struggling with their car mainly on corner entry. You have to change your setups basically for these skirts that have been cut down. Most of practice was a struggle to get the balance where we wanted it, but our speed has always been decent so we're fairly happy with that."
