Montoya and the Texaco/Havoline Team Finish 19th at Loudon
Results from New Hampshire
1. Denny Hamlin, No.11 Chevrolet
19. Juan Pablo Montoya, No.42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge
26. Reed Sorenson, No.41 Target Dodge
27. David Stremme, No.40 Coors Wide Mouth Can Dodge
MONTOYA AND THE TEXACO/HAVOLINE TEAM FINISH 19TH AT LOUDON
LOUDON, N.H. (July 1, 2007) --- Juan Pablo Montoya had never competed at New
Hampshire International Speedway (NHIS), but that didn't stop him and
the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline team from starting in the top five and
bringing home a top-20 finish. Montoya gained two spots in the NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup driver standings and now sits 19th.
Montoya took the green flag from the fifth spot for the 300-lap race.
He immediately told Crew Chief Donnie Wingo the car would not roll
through the center, and it was too tight. He had dropped back to 11th
on lap 60 before green-flag pit stops began. Montoya brought the No. 42
Dodge Avenger down pit road for an air pressure adjustment, a trackbar
adjustment, four tires and fuel. When pit stops were completed, the
Texaco/Havoline Dodge was sitting 13th.
Montoya continued to battle the tight-handling race car. The caution
flag waved on lap 95 and he told Wingo the last adjustment didn't help
at all. So the crew put the trackbar back down, but made two
significant air pressure adjustments in the rear tires. The green flag
waved on lap 101 with the black and red Dodge in 18th. There were
moments after the restart, where Montoya was racing three wide. He was
up to 16th on lap 106 and commented "the changes were better, but he
needed more."
The yellow flag waved again on lap 121, and Wingo called for a two-tire
stop to gain track position. Montoya took the green flag in the ninth
position on lap 122. It seemed no matter what the team threw at the
Texaco/Havoline Dodge, it could not make the car turn in the center.
Montoya was still in the top 10 with 100 laps to go, but fell back
battling the handling of the car. When the caution flag waved again on
lap 253, he came in for final adjustments, including the removal of a
spring rubber from the left rear in addition to fresh tires. The
additional time needed to complete the stop dropped Montoya back to 21st
with 45 laps to go. He was able to avoid a last-lap wreck and bring the
car home in the 19th spot.
Montoya moved to 19th in the driver standings, 87 points out of 15th and
323 points out of 12th - the final transfer position for the Chase to
the NEXTEL Cup
On Saturday, Montoya was spun by the No. 2 car of Clint Bowyer on lap
164 of the NASCAR Busch Series race while running in the sixth spot.
The damage to the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge was too extensive so
Montoya and new crew chief Brian Pattie called it a day. The team was
scored in the 34th position when the checkered flag waved.
CGRFS Driver Quoteboard
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA "I don't know what happened today, we couldn't get
the balance right. The Texaco/Havoline Dodge started really good and we
tried to fix it all day. We threw everything at it and it just got
worse all day long. We started with a top-five car and finished with a
top-20 car. I think we made progress from where we were before with the
CoT but it still shows we have a long way to go. I think the short runs
we were really good. Long runs we were not as strong as we need to be."
About Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
Following a strong career as a driver, 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, one Indy Pro
Series car and along with Felix Sabates he has three cars in the NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup Series, two entries in the NASCAR Busch Series and two
Daytona Prototypes in the world of Grand American Rolex Sports Car
Series racing. Ganassi's IndyCar teams have amassed five Championships
and 52 wins since 1994; his NASCAR teams have 11 wins and a
Rookie-of-the-Year title; and the Grand American team has won two of the
last three Rolex Series Daytona Prototype Championships and are the
two-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.
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