Team News

Dominate Run at the Brickyard Cut Short; Montoya Finishes 32nd

July 26, 2010

Dominate Run at the Brickyard Cut Short; Montoya Finishes 32nd

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


Speedway, Ind. (July 26, 2010) – Former Indianapolis 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya looked to make history Sunday afternoon at the Brickyard 400. Montoya was well on his way when he grabbed his second Pole Award of the season and led 86 out of 159 laps before a late race incident sent him to the garage with 15 laps remaining. The Target team finished out the day in the 32nd position.

Montoya and the Target team looked to redeem themselves after last year’s late race speeding penalty denied them of a victory at the Brickyard. The team unloaded the same chassis they tested at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this year and Montoya was quick right off the truck. The No. 42 posted the quickest times in Friday’s practice sessions and then went on to grab the Pole Award Saturday morning. The Pole Award marked the second for Montoya this season and the fifth for the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing organization. .

Sunday afternoon the green flag waved for the 17th annual Brickyard 400. Montoya led the field to the green and became a permanent fixture up front. The No. 42 Target Chevrolet pitted a total of six times, recovered from a shredded right front tire under green flag conditions and led a total of 86 laps to be credited as the WIX Lap Leader of the race. The fate of the team would change drastically in the closing laps of the race. Montoya made his final pit stop of the day on lap 139 for four tires and restarted in the seventh position. The Target Chevrolet became a handful in traffic and Montoya found himself making hard contact with the wall in turn 4. The car sustained heavy damage and Montoya was forced to the garage 15 laps shy of the finish.

Teammate Jamie McMurray went on to win the Brickyard 400. With McMurray's victory, team owner Chip Ganassi became the first to win the triple crown in American auto racing: winning the Daytona 500, Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 in the same year.

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.