Team News

McMurray Captures Second Win of Season at the Brickyard

July 27, 2010

McMurray Captures Second Win of Season at the Brickyard

Results from Indianapolis Motor Speedway
1.   Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet
2.    Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Chevrolet
3.    Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford
32.  Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet

Speedway, Ind. (July 15, 2010) – Jamie McMurray and the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats team headed north to the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway this past weekend with one goal in mind- win the Brickyard 400 and assist team owner Chip Ganassi in capturing what could be considered the “Triple Crown” of motorsports.  Ganassi had already won the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500 earlier this season, a feat no other car owner has ever accomplished in the same season.  McMurray placed his No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet in the second row lining up in the fourth position.  After running no lower than sixth, McMurray led for 16 laps on the way to winning the 17th annual Brickyard 400.

The weather reports in Indianapolis called for a “hot and humid” weekend making it harder for the teams to find that perfect set-up.  After the first practice McMurray and the Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats team made adjustments to their No. 1 Chevrolet in hopes to find some more speed.  By the end of the second practice they had, McMurray was sitting second on the speed charts behind teammate Juan Pablo Montoya.  The No. 1 car drew an early qualifying spot which worked in the teams favor due to cooler track temperatures and faster lap times.  After going out seventh of the 47-cars attempting to qualify, McMurray ran the fourth fastest time to line-up in the second row.

Sunday afternoon saw the running of the 17th annual Brickyard 400.  McMurray and his blaze orange Chevrolet was quick from the start.  Aside from doing two rounds of green flag pit stops, McMurray never dropped lower than sixth.  When the caution flag flew on lap 140 McMurray radioed in, “I think I have a left front tire going down.”  Crew chief Kevin “Bono” Manion watched as McMurray drove down pit lane and assured his driver it was not flat.  Making a last minute call for only two tires the No. 1 pit crew continued their flawless day getting McMurray off pit road first.  McMurray jumped out front on the restart and led for four laps before the No. 29 made a pass for the lead.  Just two laps later the caution flag flew again closing the field up for the final time.  When the green flag waved McMurray powered his No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet past Kevin Harvick.  McMurray could feel the gap increasing over second-place each lap.  After leading the final 10 laps McMurray crossed the finish line with a 1.39 second lead on his way to winning the Brickyard 400.

The victory marked a first in history for any team owner as Chip Ganassi has now won three of the largest events in motorsports all in the same year.  Never before has the Daytona 500, the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 been won by a sole owner in the same season.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to Pocono Raceway this weekend for the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. The race will air live on ESPN at 1:00 pm (ET) on Sunday, August 1st.

Quoteboard:

Driver, Jamie McMurray

"Everyone wants to win at Daytona and Indy.  There's a different feeling you get here than at almost any other racetrack. It's a very special place.  It's just so hard to get both organizations good at the same time.  This race, the Daytona 500 and the Indy 500 are races of strategy. You see guys dominate those races and not win. Bono made a great call on the last pit stop for two tires that worked in our favor.  It's remarkable what Chip’s been able to put together, the people he's been able to hire. I feel very honored to get to be a part of that accomplishment."

Team Owner, Chip Ganassi

“It is surreal. From where we were a while back, people had Jamie written off, people had us written off.  He couldn't have come back a better person. We had grown as a team and he had grown as a driver. We picked up where we left off, I think. I'm really happy about that.  I’m the luckiest guy on the planet.  You wouldn’t dare to dream this. You wouldn’t dare to dream this kind of year.”