Team News

Late-Race Incident Relegates McMurray and Team to 36th-Place Finish at Pocono

June 7, 2010

Late-Race Incident Relegates McMurray and Team to 36th-Place Finish at Pocono

Results from Pocono Raceway
1.    Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Toyota
2.    Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota
3.    Tony Stewart, No 14 Chevrolet
8.    Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet
36.  Jamie McMurray, No.1 McDonald’s Chevrolet
 

Long Pond, Pa. (June 6, 2010) – Jamie McMurray and the No.1 McDonald’s Team looked to build on their recent success, which included three second-place finishes in the last five races, prior to Pocono, this past weekend.  McMurray, who had finished second at some of NASCAR’s toughest and most historic venues in the previous five races (Talladega, Darlington and Charlotte) looked to continue his climb towards the coveted 12th position in the NSCS point’s standings, the cutoff for the chase.  This climb would be put on hold at Pocono, as he was run up the track by the No. 6 car and into the wall.  The hit damaged his No.1 McDonald’s Chevrolet enough to send the driver to the garage, with just 30 laps remaining, and the team wouldn’t have enough time to fix their damaged machine, settling for a 36th-place finish.

McMurray and team fought handling issues for the majority of the weekend at Pocono Raceway, looking to find just the right setup to help get the driver through two of the three turns at the triangle-shaped racetrack located one and a half hours west of New York City.  The rule of thumb is to get your car good through two of the turns, giving up just a bit on one, because it is nearly impossible to be good through all three turns.   McMurray would roll off a respectable 18th for Sunday’s event at Pocono Raceway, and would soon report that his car was “falling off” after just a few laps, and “really loose.”

This would be the story of the day for McMurray, a loose race car that just wouldn’t stay under him as he worked his way through the turns at Pocono.  Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion would continue to look for ways to tighten McMurray’s machine up as the race wore on, and the team thought that they had finally hit on something towards the middle of the 200-lap event when McMurray radioed that “I can race like this,” as he was awarded the lucky dog pass when the caution flew on lap 96. 

McMurray and team would hover right around the 20th position for the majority of the day, as most drivers’s reported that they just couldn’t pass their competitors without clean air.  The day took a positive turn for McMurray and team, as the caution flag was thrown on lap 158.  McMurray, running in the 15th position, and Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion would start to play the fuel strategy game to put the team in position to finish inside the top 10.  Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion called McMurray down pit road on lap 160 for fuel only, as the rest of the leaders stayed out, hoping that the race would go green to the end.  McMurray restarted in the 14th position on lap 164, but while running in that position on lap 167 he would fall victim to an ill-timed move by the No. 6 car.  McMurray would be forced into the outside wall, demolishing the rear of his car and relegating him to the garage. 

The finish dropped McMurray three positions in the 2010 NSCS point’s standings to 18th.  The No.1 Team will now turn their focus towards the first of two events at Michigan International Speedway this weekend, as NASCAR heads to the cradle of the American Automotive Industry.

The Helluva Good Sour Cream Dips 400 is Sunday, June 13 at 1pm ET and will be the second of seven TNT “Summer Series” races.  Radio listeners can tune-in to stations affiliated with MRN at 12:00 pm (ET).