Speed Wins Under the Friday Night Lights at Kentucky Speedway
Sparta, Ky. (July 18, 2008) - Gambling with pit strategy and fuel mileage, the bet paid off for Scott Speed and his Eddie Sharp Racing team at Kentucky Speedway. With the caution flag coming out on the last lap and sending the event into overtime, the team had déjà vu of the dramatic May race where Speed lost his lead during extra laps due to numerous cautions. This time, however, the chips fell in the favor of Speed and his team, and they rolled the No. 2 Red Bull Toyota into Kentucky Speedway's Victory Lane for their second win of the 2008 season.
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Speed blows past Caisse on the restart |
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"It's cool to win a race like that," said Speed. "[Caisse and I] had a great battle the last 30 laps or so. I'm glad I could pull this off for my guys. We went back and forth with each other a lot on the restarts. That just shows two good drivers racing really hard and really clean. Yeah, it was definitely real exciting for me."
Under the hot, summer Kentucky sun, Speed qualified the No. 2 Red Bull Toyota in the sixth position with a 31.028 second lap. This was a huge improvement in the car's handling from the afternoon practice session.
"That felt much better," reported Speed. "We can definitely do something with that. Thanks guys."
Because of a large number of wrecks during qualifying, drivers were hurried into their cars and introduced to the fans from the starting grid. With the sun setting in the west, the green flag dropped on schedule at 8:00 p.m. ET
Under one of the early race cautions, Crew Chief Patrick Donahue made a bold move and had his driver bring the No. 2 Red Bull Toyota to pit road on lap 18. The Red Bull crew quickly put on four fresh tires, added fuel and made an air pressure adjustment in hopes of fixing the slight tight condition that Speed had reported within the opening laps. With one lap to go until the race returned green, Speed came down pit road to top off with Sunoco fuel.
"You're good, buddy," said Donahue. "With a few more cautions, that should get us to the end of the race."
Speed restarted in the back of the field on lap 20. For the next 29 laps, Speed picked the positions off one by one, taking the lead for the first time at lap 49.
Caisse worked his way to the back bumper of the No. 2 car and on the lap 54 restart, passed Speed for the top spot. Speed continued to follow closely and reclaimed the lead on lap 57 while the two young drivers charged down the front stretch.
"I don't think we had the best car today, but once we got in the lead I knew we had a chance.
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I have definitely learned how much better clean air is over the last few months." -Scott Speed |
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The battle between Caisse and Speed continued the remainder of the race. Speed held the lead until getting caught up in lapped traffic on lap 79, when Caisse capitalized on the position and moved to the first position once again. Team members held their breaths because these two tangled in the May race on this same track. Just when it appeared that Caisse was pulling away and Speed might have to settle for second again, the caution came out within the final ten laps.
Drivers lined up single-file for the restart on lap 93. Coming down the front stretch to the green flag, Speed lagged back just slightly. As Speed jumped on the throttle, the run was strong and he passed Caisse on the high side just beyond the flag stand.
The Red Bull pit erupted, with nearly every team member standing on pit wall and watching the final laps intently.
On the final lap of the race, the team was just about to start the celebration of win number two when a wreck on the front stretch brought the caution flag out again. Due to ARCA RE/MAX Series rules, a one lap dash to the checked flag would be required. Flooding everyone's mind was the memory of the May race where an "overtime" transmission issue rendered the No. 2 Red Bull Toyota unable to hold onto the lead during restart after restart.
This weekend under, however, the end result would be much sweeter. Under the deep red full moon hanging low in the sky, the race restarted with a one-lap dash to the checkered flag. On lap 104 the No. 2 Red Bull Toyota jumped out to a commanding lead. The final lap went uninterrupted and Scott Speed crossed the Start/Finish line for the win.
In addition to the victory, Speed led the most laps (39) earning the Aaron's Lap Leader award and was the SunTrust Highest Finishing Rookie. Speed also earned the Klotz Halfway Leader award.
Scott Speed gained ground on the ARCA RE/MAX Series Championship point leader Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., trailing him now by only 65 points. |
Lofton Comes Home with a Top 10 Despite Difficult Day
SPARTA, Ky. (July 18, 2008) - Eddie Sharp Racing's Justin Lofton entered the Kentucky ARCA 150 very confident and with momentum following his first win at Michigan International Speedway and his first pole at Cayuga Motor Speedway. Engine woes during qualifying sent the No. 20 Lofton Cattle team back to a provisional starting position. Lofton persevered all night, gaining a phenomenal 24 spots to finish in the tenth position.
"Wow, that was a long night!" said Lofton. "The team worked so hard but the car just wasn't there tonight. I told Wayne, he could have asked me what it [the car] was doing during each lap, and every time I would have a different answer. It was all over the place! I appreciate all the work the guys put in, especially how they thrashed in between qualifying and the race to diagnose the engine problem and then change motors. We are a true team at ESR and that was evident this afternoon, watching everyone work side by side to get the 20 car put back together. It's a great program to be a part of."
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Justin Lofton |
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Justin Lofton and his team rolled the No. 20 to the qualifying grid on the hot, steamy Friday afternoon. Everyone knew the track was slippery. As Lofton came through Turn 2 on his first timed lap, the back end of the Dodge snapped around slid the car sideways and up towards the outside wall. Staying on the throttle, Lofton skillfully kept the car off the wall and restarted his lap. He cautiously completed the second timed lap and drove the No. 20 Lofton Cattle Dodge back to the garage stall so the team could evaluate the issue.
"I'm not sure what happened," said Lofton. "The track is very, very slick, but going into [turn] one it just didn't feel like we had a lot of power. The team is going to take a good look at it and we'll get the car turned around for the race. My team puts together great cars and I know they're going to work really hard during this break before the race to get it pulled back together. We'll start in the back tonight and I'll just have to drive like crazy to get to the front. I know we can do it thought."
"I told Wayne, he could have asked me what [the car] was doing during each lap, and every time I would have a different answer. It was all over the place!" -Justin Lofton |
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As the sun set and the track lights gleamed brightly, it was a perfect summer night for racing in Sparta, Kentucky. The green flag dropped at 8:00 p.m. and the Lofton Cattle No. 20 quickly moved through the field.
"The car isn't bad at all," radioed Lofton. "It's a tick free and moves around a lot. But it's not bad. It stays on the bottom well."
Lofton moved into the top 15 in only 20 laps, and reporting only that the car was a bit loose. As the night wore on, Lofton had to fight harder and harder to control the No. 20 Lofton Cattle Dodge.
The team pitted on lap 27 during a caution for four tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment.
"It's WAY loose Wayne!" Lofton called out as the race went green following the team's first pit stop. Another caution immediately followed and as soon as Lofton could catch his breath, he reported what he was feeling out on the track.
"It's weird," said Lofton. "Just out of nowhere it breaks loose. With no warning at all."
Lofton restarted the race on lap 35 in the 24th position.
Nearing the halfway point of the caution-filled race, the team opted to pit again under the yellow flag on lap 48. This time, the Lofton Cattle team put four fresh tires on and made a track bar adjustment to help with the car's handling.
As the night progressed, Lofton reported that the changes "picked up some front end grip" and that the handling "gets better as the run goes on."
With ten laps to go in the race, Lofton climbed back into the top 15 and was still moving forward.
On the final lap of the race, Eddie Sharp Racing teammate Ken Butler, III spun into the outside wall and brought out the tenth caution of the night. When the dust settled, the No. 20 Lofton Cattle Dodge was scored in the tenth position.
Finishing in racing "overtime", the race extended into 104 laps, with a one-lap dash to the checkered flag. Lofton maintained his tenth place position. Lofton moved an impressive 24 positions from start to finish. Unfortunately, Lofton was not awarded the Casite Hard Charger honor because in accordance to ARCA RE/MAX Series rules, those starting in a provisional position, as Lofton did, are ineligible for the award.
"We worked really hard and had a little luck getting this tenth place tonight," said Lofton as he was getting ready to head home. "It's not where we wanted or what we know we are capable of, but to have a really bad day and still come out tenth is something we can be proud of. We have set the bar high for the remainder of the season and will go to Berlin next weekend looking to continue that trend."
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Top 10 Finish for KBIII Thwarted by Last Lap Accident
SPARTA, Ky. (July 18, 2008) - Ken Butler, III started under the Friday night lights of Kentucky Speedway in the 12th position. Just as KBIII was coming to the checkered flag with a top 10 finish in sight on the final lap, contact sent the No. 22 Aaron's Lucky Dog Toyota into the wall. Butler finished the Kentucky ARCA 150 in the 28th position.
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Ken Butler III and the No. 22 Aaron's Lucky Dog Toyota |
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"We worked so hard to be there at the end," said KBIII. "It is just so unfortunate. We had it. We had a top 10 right there. I want to thank my guys who worked really hard all day in the heat. I want to thank all of the Aaron's Regional Managers for a great weekend and for coming out to cheer us on."
In the hot July afternoon, KBIII qualified the No. 22 Aaron's Lucky Dog Toyota in the 12th position with a 31.429 second qualifying lap. "The track is really slick out there right now," said Butler after his qualifying lap. "We're hoping it will tighten up for the night race. But right now it's pretty bad out there. We're happy with our starting position. A lot of good teams are back in the garage right now pulling out back up cars. I'm just glad we're not one of them!"
Drivers climbed right into their cars and were introduced on the starting grid. The cars rolled onto the track and the green flagged dropped at 8:00 p.m. as the sun was setting.
Following the first of ten cautions, KBIII called out to his team, "man, I hope this track tightens up a bit. We're pretty loose!" The team opted to remain on the track with the leaders during the first few cautions.
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"We worked so hard to be there at the end. It is just so unfortunate. We had it. We had a top 10 right there. ...it just wasn't meant to be." -Ken Butler, III |
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Restarting in traffic proved to be problematic. During the restart on lap 20, KBIII had to dive low to avoid contact with a car that had possibly missed a shift. KBIII held his position even with the car so as not to be penalized for passing illegally. When this occurred, other competitors flew by on the inside and were not penalized, causing multiple lost positions by the No. 22 car.
When the fourth caution of the day came at lap 23, the team decided to come in for four tires, fuel, and a track bar adjustment. "It feels really twitchy," KBIII reported before he came to pit on lap 27. "It just feels like we can't carry speed because it is so twitchy and loose."
KBIII returned to the track and worked his way back up into the top 20, despite a penalty for passing to the inside on a restart, just as he had been passed before. With the car still a little loose, Crew Chief Jonathan Davis told KBIII to bring the Toyota back to pit road under caution on lap 48. The crew quickly put on four fresh tires, added fuel, and made track bar and wedge adjustments in hopes of tightening the car's handling up some more.
These adjustments helped and KBIII was able to drive into the top 10 for the closing laps of the 100-lap event. With another top 10 finish in sight, KBIII had just completed the pass for the ninth position and was coming to the checkered flag when contact turned the No. 22 into the wall. This ended the day for the No. 22 on what would have been the final lap. Because the caution came before the leader took the checkered flag, the cars remaining on the track would have a one-lap dash when the race returned green. The Kentucky ARCA 150 was extended to 104 laps with teammate Scott Speed earning the win.
"Today we worked to stay out of trouble and drive smart," said Butler, III. "With that and good pits stops from my guys, we were in the top 10 at the end and it just wasn't meant to be. We've had some bad luck recently and haven't been able to get the finishes that we know we can get. We'll head to Berlin next weekend and look to get ourselves back on track. I want to thank Aaron's for their support. We had some a lot of Aaron's regional managers here this weekend and had a lot of fun spending the weekend with them." |
