Trevor Bayne wins in a wild weekend in Iowa!
Trevor Bayne won the 3rd Annual DuPont Pioneer 250 for his first win of the season. He won on Sunday afternoon after the race got postponed Saturday night due to rain and with 86 laps to go, delayed for rain once again. Austin Dillon, who led 204 of 250 laps, finished 2nd followed by Elliott Sadler, Sam Hornish Jr and Kyle Larson rounded out the top 5.
After getting postponed until Sunday morning, it was Dillon once again leading the field to the green under cloudy conditions. Hornish Jr led the first lap and led until the caution came out. The first caution came out due to Brad Sweet and Kevin Swindell getting together after getting bumped from Cole Whitt on lap 3.
There was a long green flag run through lap 50 but it went back to yellow as Brian Vickers got together with Bayne. Bayne was getting held up with a lap car and Vickers went three wide and Vickers got turned around.
At 100 laps in, It was all Dillon. He had a pretty good lead on Hornish Jr, Scott and others and were just cruising along.
The third caution waved for debris and all of the leaders went in for pit stops. They went back to green and a huge wreck occurred! No. 99 of Alex Bowman got loose and spun No. 20 of Vickers and No. 60 of Travis Pastrana was there and just got hit. Pastrana then went down the track and got clobbered by the No. 33 of Max Papis. Pastrana got out and was okay while Vickers went to the garage and Bowman and Papis drove their cars to pit road. Pastrana will be done for the day as the 3 other cars have a ton of work to do.
All of a sudden, a MASSIVE downpour just hit the speedway and soaked the race track and all of the cars were heading down pit road. As of 12:31 ET, covers have been put on the cars and people have been advised to take shelter.
12:37 ET: Sun is out and jet driers are now on the track.
1:36 ET Driver have refired their engines.
After a 1 hour and 9 minute rain delay, we went back to green in Iowa! Dillon did not seem concerned as he continued to lead and pull away from Bayne and the others, he is looking for his 3rd career win. The green did not last for long as the No. 43 of Michael Annett spun off of turn 2 and barley touched the inside wall. None of the front leaders came to pit but Drew Herring, who is in the #54 ride, came in. Herring is driving for KBM due to Busch driving in Pocono right now. Annett spun again trying to catch up to the field due to blowing his left rear tire.
With about 20 to go Dillon caught lap traffic and Bayne got caught up to him. When they cleared, Bayne got side by side and bumped him a little bit. Dillon did the same and finally passed Dillon with 11 to go.
Aric Almirola and David Ragan Lend A Hand for Military Families
NASCAR Cup competitors Aric Almirola and David Ragan joined together to lend their hands in assembling comfort kits for children whose family members were being deployed through the various branches of the military.
The event “With You All the Way”, hosted by Pocono Raceway, was sponsored by NASCAR, The NASCAR Foundation, the USO, Comfort Crew for Military Kids, and the Trevor Romain Company.
“It means a lot to their families and those that wish their loved ones were at home with them,” David Ragan, driver of the No. 32 Taco Bell Ford, said as he packed the comfort kits. “To send a little care package that says, ‘Hey, we’re with you and thinking about you and supporting you’ goes a long way.”
“It’s great the NASCAR community gets involved at events like this,” Ragan continued. “It means a lot because they are certainly sacrificing a lot.”
“It’s great to get the fans, the drivers and Miss Sprint Cup involved too,” Ragan said. “It’s the least we can do to say thank you to the military and their families.”
Ragan shared that he could definitely relate as he has had many family members who have served in the military over the years.
“I’ve had a lot of family members in service, some in the Air Force and some in the Army,” Ragan said. “My father was a little too young to go to Vietnam but I had a lot of uncles involved.”
“So I know that it is important to let the military families know we are thinking about them.”
“Everyone’s enjoying doing this and it puts things in perspective,” Ragan said. “It makes you forget about all those small things that you think are trouble.”
Richard Petty driver Aric Almirola also participated in the comfort kit assembly line. And for the driver of the No. 43 Smithfield Ford supporting the military is also very personal.
“It definitely touches a personal spot for me growing up in a military family,” Almirola said. “My dad was in the Air Force and I was born on Eglin Air Force base.”
“It means a lot to me to be able to give back to these military families,” Almirola continued. “To do something as simple as pack up some boxes for kids and put a smile on their face means so much.”
One of Almirola’s major tasks was to assemble and dress the teddy bears, complete with flight caps, goggles and scarves.
“We had a good team going on with a group building these bears,” Almirola said. “Just looking at those bears; it makes me wonder whose hands they’re going to get in.”
“Hopefully it makes them happy when they get it,” Almirola continued. “It’s really a cool event and it makes me appreciative of our military and all who support our country.”
Like Ragan, Almirola acknowledged that events like this comfort kit assemblage really helped to put his racing life in perspective.
“It certainly puts a lot of perspective on life in general,” Almirola said. “Without the military and those that keep us free, we certainly wouldn’t be out here riding around on a race track.”
“I respect those people tremendously and we owe them a lot to what we get to do on a daily basis and for the protection they provide for us,” Almirola continued. “We’re building bears and giving them gifts because they deserve it.”
“It puts things into total perspective.”
This unique packing event came about due to the partnership between the NASCAR Foundation and the USO.
“The NASCAR Foundation approached us to be a part of their “American Salute” campaign this year and wanted to have a way to give back to military families,” Emily Branch, Account Manager for the USO, said. “So, we thought the “With You All the Way” program was a perfect fit and was a good way to get the drivers and the crews engaged.”
“We have three military families to support the event today and tomorrow they will have a VIP experience at the track,” Branch continued. “We also have some drivers, crew members and general volunteers from the industry.”
Branch acknowledged that the comfort kits are lifelines for many of the military children at all ages.
“These kits mean so much to the military children,” Branch said. “They give comfort and provide support.”
“There is a DVD in the kit and a journal, as well as a caregiver manual,” Branch continued. “The kits are designed by the Comfort Crew for Military Kids.”
“The Trevor Romain Company is also a partner and we have multiple kits for the deployed, for children of wounded service members, and kits for children of fallen soldiers.”
The creator of the comfort kits, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Comfort Crew for Military Kids Ronda Englander, was also on hand for the Pocono packing party.
“We designed all the elements to be a comprehensive set of resources to help kids with all aspects of deployment,” Englander said. “There is a journal and we feel strongly this is an important way to express their feelings.”
“It’s an opportunity to document what happens in their lives when their loved one is away,” Englander continued. “One family that received our resources shared that the father who was away cried when he read his daughter’s journal.”
“That’s how she knew she had gotten her daddy back because he got his feelings back.”
For Englander, as for the drivers who participated in this packing event, this is also a very personal event and passion.
“My dad served in Viet Nam so I was a military kid and know a little bit about the sacrifices military families make,” Englander said. “He did not survive his tour.”
“I was three at the time, Englander continued. “So, this most certainly is a labor of love and most important to me to make sure that this generation of military kids does not feel alone and that they have the support they need to overcome the challenges.”
“The theme of our deployment kit is “We are with you all the way” and that’s what we want military families to know.”
Englander also expressed her gratitude to the NASCAR community for their support of the effort.
“The NASCAR community is such a great fit for our work and for this type of event,” Englander said. “NASCAR fans understand that our military are the true rock stars.”
“We’re in awe of the drivers here but the NASCAR community is so supportive of the military community,” Englander continued. “It’s a great fit.”
The other partner in the USO Comfort kit project is one of the most important, the host Pocono Raceway.
“It’s all about the families and the kids,” Brandon Igdalsky, President and CEO of Pocono Raceway, said. “To be able to give back to the troops and to help for all they do is so worth it.”
“Of everything in these boxes, the one thing that stands out to me are the teddy bears,” Igdalsky continued. “I know they would be most meaningful to my children.”
“To see these kids here having fun and helping out makes it all worthwhile.
For more information on the “With You All the Way” comfort kit project, visit www.comfortcrew.org or www.uso.org.
Jimmie Johnson Party of One in Pocono Victory Lane
After dominating at Dover last week and not getting the result he wanted due to a restart penalty, Jimmie Johnson ordered up a table for one at the Party in the Poconos 400 Presented by Walmart, right in Victory Lane.
Although challenged by some late race cautions, Johnson dominated the race, leading a career high 128 laps.
He also dominated the race weekend, from being quickest in first practice to being at the front of the field in the final practice session. And thanks to the rainout of qualifying, the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet also started from the pole, which was critical for track position.
The win was Johnson’s 63rd career victory, his third win of the season, and his third checkered flag in 23 races at the Tricky Triangle.
“What a race car,” Johnson said. “Not only the car and the handling and the grip that it had, but also the engine and what was under the hood.”
“When I would lean on the throttle, this baby would yard anybody and everybody,” Johnson continued. “Today everything worked out.”
Not only did Chad Knaus, Johnson’s crew chief, concur but he also enjoyed every minute of the Pocono competition.
“Wow, it was a lot of fun,” Knaus said. “I really love this race track.”
“It’s always been one of my favorites,” Knaus continued. “When you come up here you have to have a race car that will handle, great horsepower and so many cool things that come into play.”
“When we showed up on Friday, we realized that we had a great car,” Knaus said. “Jimmie did a fantastic job and his car control was second to none.”
Greg Biffle, who had a great run at Pocono, particularly on the last restart, finished in the runner up position with his No. 16 3M Ford. Although this was his fifth top-10 finish in 21 races at Pocono and his fifth top-10 finish of the season, Biffle acknowledged that the good finish did not come quite as easily as he would have liked.
“It was definitely a struggle for us,” Biffle said. “We had two pit stops that weren’t the greatest and hung a lug nut.”
“We were struggling for track position all day,” Biffle continued. “Turns 3 and 4 (or whatever you call it) was where we struggled.”
“I was terrible there and anything I would gain in turns 1 and 2, I would lose.”
Biffle acknowledged that he simply did not have anything for the 48 bunch. But he took the runner up finish as a positive, particularly going into Michigan next week, a track where he has had success in the past.
“The 48 was super fast,” Biffle said. “He just drove away from everybody.”
“We had some good restarts and we were lucky with the lane choices, but most of the top five cars were faster than us on sheer speed,” Biffle continued. “We still have work to do but this is a step in the right direction.”
“That’s a positive for us going to next week.”
Fan favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. led the Hendrick Motorsports team in the finishing order, taking the checkered flag third in the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet. This was Junior’s 10th top-10 finish in 27 races at Pocono.
But even with the top-five finish, Earnhardt Jr. acknowledged that the restarts at the Tricky Triangle were the most challenging for him to overcome.
“Them last restarts were kind of tough,” Junior said. “Being on the inside on the front row really ain’t the cat bird’s seat.”
“The guys behind you can get good runs and put you three-wide,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “So, I was more in defense mode there and Greg (Biffle) just got around us on the outside.”
“But I’m pretty happy with the way we ran,” Junior said. “Just looking forward to going to Michigan, a track we run pretty good at, next week.”
Stewart-Haas Racing had a great time at the Party in the Poconos, with Tony Stewart, in the No. 14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, finishing fourth and teammate Ryan Newman, in the No. 39 HAAS Automation Chevrolet, finishing fifth.
“The restarts got tight,” Stewart acknowledged. “The good thing is we got confidence from the last three weeks in a row.”
The third member of the Stewart-Haas team, Danica Patrick, finished 29th in her first ever run in a Cup car at Pocono. She did, however, bring her No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet to the checkered flag on the lead lap.
“For Ryan and I to finish in the top five and Danica doing better, we’re just gaining on it,” Stewart said. “I’m just proud our group had a good run.”
Stewart’s teammate Ryan Newman did indeed have a good finish, playing both the speed and strategy cards throughout the race, even on the restarts.
“Well we did have the speed today,” Newman said. “Strategy worked out to our benefit.”
“I thought I was going to be in the middle of a Busch (brother Kurt and Kyle) sandwich there at the end going into Turn 2,” Newman continued. “But I have to thank them for giving me a little bit of room.”
“Strategy worked to our benefit with the yellows there at the end,” Newman said. “Just a good rebound for us and that’s really what we needed for this team.”
The Busch brothers, Kyle and Kurt, finished sixth and seventh respectively. Both, however, had their share of adversity from which they had to battle back.
“We just kept working on our M&M’s Camry all day,” Kyle Busch said. “We probably had a seventh-place car all day long and found ourselves in third on the last restart.”
“I just couldn’t get going for some reason,” Busch continued. “I just didn’t do a good job there and we found ourselves in sixth.”
“We’ll take that and go on to Michigan.”
“We had a fast car again, ran up front but a mistake on my part on pit road stalled our momentum,” Kurt Busch said, after overshooting his pit box on Lap 126. “But we battled back with a solid finish.”
“We’ve made great strides in the past month and need to continue the progression,” Busch continued. “I don’t see any reason why we can’t.”
Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota, Kevin Harvick, behind the wheel of the No. 29 Rheem Chevrolet, and Joey Logano, just back from Iowa in time to jump behind the wheel of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford rounded out the top ten finishers for the 32nd annual Party in the Poconos.
Earnhardt Jr. notches first top five since March at Pocono
Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a few chances on a rash of late cautions during the end of the Party in the Poconos 400, but he didn’t have enough to overtake the dominant car of teammate Jimmie Johnson.
Earnhardt Jr. came home third and inched ever closer to that first victory on the Pennsylvania triangle. His finish on Sunday afternoon was his first top five at the track since 2008 and his first since finishing second at California in March. Having run top five all day, it was a finish the team needed after weeks of scratching and clawing for one.
“It is good for us to get a good run. We were counting on sort of rebounding,” said Earnhardt Jr. after the race. “We haven’t had a good last couple of months, cars haven’t been that fast, had some issues here and there.
“But it’s good to get a good solid full race in and finish where I felt like the car was capable of running, and we got a couple other tracks coming up. Hopefully we can do this throughout the summer and get ourselves in the Chase pretty comfortably. But I feel the same way as Greg [Biffle, who finished second], we got a little work to do to get where some of the other guys are. But we’re pretty happy about today.”
With rain having washed out practice and qualifying Friday, Earnhardt Jr. started the day sixth. He ran amongst the leaders all afternoon, following in Johnson’s tire tracks for the second half of the event. Earnhardt Jr. knew that he didn’t have anything for Johnson, but said he had everyone else from fifth on back covered and wanted to make sure he finished where he should.
Pocono has been far from his best track, however. In 27 Pocono races he’s only earned one pole and 10 top 10 finishes. But he has a pair of second place finishes – 2001 and 2007 – and now a pair of third place finishes. And the driver he was chasing on Sunday is his teammate, giving Earnhardt Jr. and his No. 88 National Guard team the tools and resources to get better for the second Pocono race later in the year.
“Fortunate enough for me I get to be in the same shop as those guys. I get to lean on them and I get to know exactly what’s happening under the hood and I can learn and use that to my advantage,” Earnhardt Jr. said about his teammate, as well as praising them for having winning cars two weeks in a row.
“When it’s good for Jimmie, it’s equally as good for us in an indirect way and hopefully we can see what they did and come back to Pocono and try to improve on what we did today.”
Earnhardt Jr.’s performance, he failed to lead a lap, moved him back up into the top five in points. Next week the NSCS heads to Michigan where he’s the defending winner of the Quicken Loans 400. And he heads there, as last year, with momentum from a strong Pocono run.
“We ran well here last year, we’ve got a good package going to Pocono and going to Michigan – hopefully going to Michigan we’ve got a good package, when we get there we’ll see,” said Earnhardt Jr.
“But so far it’s been real similar to last year. We were strong here last year.”
Lap by Lap: Party at the Poconos 400 presented by Wal-Mart won by Jimmie Johnson
After suffering a penalty late in the race last week, Jimmie Johnson would bounce back this week, dominating at Pocono Raceway.
Green flag
Lap 1 Edwards leads into turn one ahead of Kenseth
Lap 2 Kasey Kahne is off the pace and on to pit road
Lap 3 Johnson moves into second behind Edwards
Lap 4 Edwards leads Johnson Kenseth Earnhardt Bowyer Ky Busch Harvick Keselowski Almirola Menard
Lap 6 Earnhardt Jr. passes Kenseth for third
Lap 10 Johnson passes Edwards for the lead
Lap 12 Johnson leads Edwards, Earnhardt, Harvick, Kenseth, Keselowski, Ky Busch, Bowyer, Almirola, Ku Busch
Lap 15 Ky Busch passes Keselowski, Ku Busch passes Bowyer and Almirola
Lap 16 Almirola passes Bowyer
Lap 17 Johnson leads Edwards Earnhardt Harvick Kenseth Ky Busch Keselowski Ku Busch Almirola Bowyer
Lap 20 Stewart passes Bowyer for 10th
Lap 21 Stewart passes Almirola for ninth
Lap 23 Keselowski passes Ky Busch
Lap 24 Johnson leads Edwards Earnhardt Harvick Kenseth Keselowski Ky Busch Ku Busch Stewart Almirola
Lap 26 Pit stops begin as many drivers hit pit road
Lap 27 Johnson makes his way down pit road from the lead, followed by his teammate Earnhardt. Keselowski to the race lead
Lap 28 Gordon and Logano to pit road
Lap 29 Keselowski and Patrick pit. McMurray to the lead.
Lap 30 McMurray pits, handing the lead back to Johnson as the cycle completes
Lap 31 Johnson leads Edwards by 3.3 seconds
Lap 45 Johnson leads Edwards Earnhardt Harvick Kenseth Ky Busch Keselowski Ku Busch Stewart Biffle
Lap 51 Johnson leads Edwards Earnhardt Harvick Kenseth Ky Busch Keselowski Ku Busch Stewart Biffle
Lap 55 Truex, Burton, McMurray and Harvick pit…..Ku Busch, Kenseth and Ky Busch pit
Lap 56 Bowyer, Stewart, J Gordon and Edwards pit
Lap 57 Earnhardt and Hamlin pit
Lap 58 Johnson pits from the lead……Montoya and Patrick also pits as Keselowski leads
Lap 59 Logano, Newman and Keselowski pit. Johnson goes back to the lead
Lap 64 Johnson leads Edwards Earnhardt Harvick Kenseth Keselowski Ku Busch Stewart Ky Busch Biffle
Caution lap 65 debris. Leaders head down pit road. Johnson leads Earnhardt Edwards Kenseth off pit road. Newman stays out so he assumes the lead. Patrick gets the lucky dog.
Restart lap 71 as Newman and Johnson are side-by-sde for the lead. Newman leads off of turn one.
Lap 73 Johnson leads Newman Earnhardt Kenseth Harvick Keselowski Edwards Ky Busch Ku Busch Hamlin
Lap 75 Hamlin passes Ku Busch
Lap 90 Keselowski passes Harvick
Lap 92 Harvick passes Kenseth as Newman makes his scheduled pit stop from second spot
Lap 94 Johnson leads Earnhardt Keselowski Kenseth Harvick Edwards Ky Busch Ku Busch Hamlin Montoya….Truex pits
Lap 98 Logano, Bowyer, Hamlin and Kenseth pit. Kenseth has problems on the left rear.
Lap 99 Ky Busch, Stewart, Harvick, Earnhardt and Keselowski pit
Lap 100 Johnson pits out of the lead. McMurray also pits. Harvick makes a pass thru for being too fast on pit road.
Lap 101 Newman leads Johnson as pit cycle completes itself.
48 laps to go Newman leads Johnson Keselowski Earnhardt Kenseth Ku Busch Hamlin Ky Busch Edwards Montoya
47 laps to go Johnson takes the lead from Newman
45 laps to go Ky Busch passes Hamlin
38 to go Newman pits
Caution lap 123 debris. Dinger gets the lucky dog. Johnson leads Hamlin Earnhardt Keselowski Ky Busch Biffle off pit road. Newman stays out to take over the lead. Edwards pits with one to go, giving up his track position, to top off.
Restart 31 to go as Newman and Johnson are side-by-side for the lead. Johnson leads off of turn one ahead of Newman
30 to go Johnson leads Newman Earnhardt Hamlin Keselowski Kenseth Stewart Ky Busch Biffle Montoya
Caution 28 to go Kenseth and Montoya both go for a spin in the tunnel turn while battling for position. Montoya got loose and got into Kenseth, sending them both around
Restart 24 to go as Newman and Johnson are side-by-side…three wide for the lead briefly with Newman, Earnhardt and Johnson. Johnson pulls ahead off of turn one. Both Keselowski and Stewart get really really loose off of the tunnel turn and both make incredible saves.
23 to go Blaney goes for a spin after contact from Almirola
Restart 19 to go as Johnson and Newman are side-by-side, three-wide for the lead as Earnhardt makes a dive….Johnson leads Earnhardt off of turn one
17 to go Johnson leads Earnhardt Ky Busch Hamlin Newman Biffle Ku Busch Stewart Burton Logano
15 to go Newman passes Hamlin back
Caution 13 to go A.J. Allmendinger has problems – think it’s suspension related
Restart 9 to go teammates Earnhardt and Johnson are side-by-side for the lead going into turn one……Johnson pulls off of turn one
8 to go Johnson leads Earnhardt Ky Busch Biffle Newman Stewart Hamlin……
7 to go caution as Blaney gets into the wall
Restart 4 to go Johnson leads the field into turn one as Biffle and Earnhardt are side-by-side for second. Biffle passes Earnhardt for second
3 to go Johnson leads Biffle Earnhardt Stewart Ky Busch Newman Ku Busch Hamlin Harvick Burton
FL Newman passes Ky Busch out of the tunnel turn. Menard had a tire go down going into turn two.
Jimmie Johnson wins the Party of the Poconos 500. Biffle Earnhardt Stewart Newman Ky Busch Ku Busch Hamlin Harvick Logano Burton Gordon McMurray Montoya.
