DISAPPOINTING 32ND PLACE FINISH FOR THE TARGET TEAM AT THE "MONSTER MILE"

Results (with starting pos.) from Dover International Speedway
1.             (24) Matt Kenseth, No. 17 Ford
20.          (31) Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet
32.          (19) Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet

Dover, Del. (May 15, 2011) – Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team looked to take on the “Monster Mile” over the weekend. The crew battled rain, a finicky handling race car, track position and a string of bad luck near the end of the race to finish out the 400-lap event in the 32nd position.

Teams spent all day Friday practicing for the FedEx 400 and come Saturday, rain moved through the area causing qualifying to be rained out. Montoya lined-up the No. 42 Target Chevrolet in the 19th position, based on practice speeds, for Sunday afternoon’s race. When the green flag dropped handling concerns were reported in and the crew set to work on adjusting the race car for the remainder of the race. Montoya would lead lap 286 but unfortunately became victim of a string of bad luck as the race progressed. The Target Chevrolet experienced transmission problems and then two consecutive unscheduled pit stops for a spin in turn 4 and a tire going down.

“We just couldn’t catch a break today,” Montoya stated. “Once we got the handling under control everything seemed to fall apart. It’s just frustrating when you work hard to get the car where you want it only to have bad luck hit you. I know things will start turning around for us soon.”

NOTES
- Montoya has two poles, two top-five and four top-10 finishes out of 11 races this season
- Montoya currently sits 15th in the point standings; 32 points out of 10th
- Montoya has an average starting position of 16.8 and an average finishing position of 17.5 this season

The Sprint All-Star race is the next event on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule. The non-points race will include Montoya and 21 other drivers vying for a $1,000,000. The race will air on SPEED and PRN Saturday, May 21st at 7:00 pm ET.