Race Report - SaveMart 350 at Infineon Raceway
Results from Infineon Raceway
1. Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota
6. Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge
38. Scott Pruett, No. 41 Target Dodge
MONTOYA RALLIES BACK TO FINISH SIXTH AT SONOMA
SONOMA, Calif. (June 22, 2008) --- Running second Juan Pablo Montoya and the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge appeared to be a threat to defend their 2007 race win at Infineon Raceway, until Montoya was spun by the No. 21 car on lap 75. Montoya was able to re-fire the car and continue on to finish the road course race in sixth. It was the team’s second top-10 finish of the season, and the first for the pairing of Montoya and Crew Chief Brian Pattie.
Montoya qualified 21st on Friday, but the team improved the Texaco/Havoline Dodge on Saturday and was confident they had a shot at defending their race win. The green flag waved and after the first lap, Montoya had already maneuvered around three cars. He worked his way up into the top 10 on lap 13. He had been pretty quiet on the radio, but told Pattie on lap 15 the car needed more forward bite.
On lap 21 of the scheduled 110-lap competition, Montoya was sitting eighth. Pattie told Montoya he would be pitting for the first of two planned pit stops on lap 29 and he did just that. Montoya, eventual race winner Kyle Busch and Greg Biffle all brought their cars down pit road on lap 29 for service, just one lap later the caution flag waved and the remainder of the field pitted. The three lined up first through third – Biffle, Montoya, Busch respectively – for the green flag on lap 32. Biffle spun off course on the fresh tires, and as Montoya tried to avoid him Busch was able to get by and take the lead. For the next 35 laps, Busch and Montoya would run first and second.
Pattie called Montoya down pit road on lap 69 for the team’s final scheduled stop. The No. 42 crew performed another flawless stop as the caution waved one lap later again and Montoya was second behind Busch for the restart on lap 74. Just one lap after the green flag waved, Marcos Ambrose spun Montoya after trying to pass the car of Jamie McMurray. Montoya was able to get the car pointed in the right direction and continue on, but was now back in the 15th position.
Montoya remained patient over the closing laps and was able to gain nine positions with calculated passes while avoiding several incidents on the track. He took the checkered flag in the sixth position to earn his second top-10 finish at Infineon Raceway.
Montoya gained three spots in the NASCAR Sprint Cup driver standings, and now sits 19th just 254 points out of 12th. The team heads north to New Hampshire Motor Speedway next weekend.
Montoya Quotes:
"The Texaco/Havoline Dodge was a good race car. It wasn’t as fast as we needed to be, but overall it was pretty good and I think we would have had something for Busch at the end. You know it was one of those deals where we were hoping for a little bit more. The team did a great job on the pit stops and we were competitive, we just got tangled up with the No. 21 and it cost us a few spots and a shot at a repeat victory."
Pattie Quote:
"Our day was pretty uneventful except for one lap with the No. 21 car. The guys did an excellent job on pit stops, engineering and gas mileage. Everyone in the motor shop did an excellent job, too. My engineer had the gas figured out to the hundredth and it was perfect, so we had no issues. It was just frustrating because we were running at the front and ended up finishing sixth."
About Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc.
With nine wins already in 2008, the team continues to add to its tally of 98 trips to victory lane. Chip Ganassi created his own one-car IndyCar team in 1990 and established a partnership with a new sponsor, Target. Today, his teams include two IRL IndyCars, and along with Felix Sabates he has three cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, two entries in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and a Daytona Prototype in the world of Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series racing. Ganassi’s IndyCar teams have amassed five Championships and 61 wins since 1994; his NASCAR teams have 12 wins and two Rookie-of-the-Year titles; and the Grand American team has won two Rolex Series Daytona Prototype Championships and are the three-time defending Champions of the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Chip Ganassi Racing operates out of state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis, Ind., and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Back to Race Results
|
