Posts Tagged ‘Danica Patrick’

Kevin Harvick came back from two bad pit stops to win Saturday’s Sam’s Town 300 Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Harvick had fast car all day dominating the race in the beginning, winding up in the middle of the pack because of to bad pit stops. After the second pit stop, Harvick told his crew over the radio they “looked like a bunch of idiots.”

After the race, he called his car “really fast. We definitely have some work to do on pit road. I get mad. They know how I am and know what I expect of them.”

Harvick made his way through the field to return to the lead and beat Denny Hamlin to the finish by 1.3 seconds. Following in the top five were Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski and Brian Vickers.

Kyle Busch was contending for the lead towards the end of the race until he pushed a little to hard coming out of turn four slapping the wall, dropping him to 16th.

Danica Patrick’s third Nationwide race ended near the halfway point of the event when she and Michael McDowell got together going into turn one, and both cars slammed into the outside wall.

Patrick, who will take a four-month break from stock car racing while she concentrates on her IndyCar ride, finished 36th.

Danica pointed the blame at McDowell for turning down the track and causing the crash. “We had a good car, we really did,” Patrick said. “Unfortunately, we got caught in a bad situation with a driver who wasn’t looking and a spotter who wasn’t calling.”

Later in a interview McDowell to the blame for the wreck. “100 percent my fault. She was coming up on new tires and the closing rate was so fast. I closed the door.”

The beginning of the race was delayed for about an hour and a half due to rain, and the rain returned to put the race under caution just after half way. At that point, Busch had a 3.2-second lead over Vickers.

Several more cautions bunched the field, but the finally came down to  on whether Harvick’s car was strong enough to get him out front after the two bad pitstops. With 25 laps to go, he passed Hamlin for the lead and wasn’t challenged the rest of the way.

Results Sam’s Town 300

Speed TV contributed to this report

A race that was pretty much in the hands of Joey Logano ended up going to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch.

Busch passed Greg Biffle in the last mile Saturday at Auto Club Speedway to win the Stater Bros. 300 Nationwide Series race after the dominant Logano had led 130 laps, consistently rejecting competitions all afternoon.

Logano’s dominance for much of the race turned it  into a snoozer, but the final two laps it was a green white checkered finish making it a tight race to the finish.

Logano led going into turn one on the restart, but Biffle got under Lagano and nudged him , making slight contact with Logano and sending him high in turn two putting Logano back to fourth place as Busch and Brad Keselowski also soared past.

On the final lap, coming out of turn four Busch got to the inside of Biffle, side drafting him and slingshoting past Biffle to win the race, Logano got spin by Brad Keselowski coming to the start finish line, Logano wound up in the infield grass.

Busch, only led  four of the 150 laps was on the tail of Logano most of the race, this gives JGR its fifth straight Nationwide win at Auto Club Speedway.

“That’s crazy,” Busch said. “That’s some racing there.”

Not too surprising was Logano’s reaction at the end of the race,not to pleased with the turn one events. He said he was hit by Biffle in the first turn on the final restart. “I realize it’s tight racing, but he could have done it differently,” Logano said. “You keep doing that, and eventually it’s going to come back and bite you.”

Biffle said Logano made a mistake “and spun his tires and couldn’t get going. He tried to come down and block the bottom, but I already had a run and I wasn’t going to give that up.”

Logano led 47 of the first 50 laps and 68 of the first 71 and was rarely challenged at the front until the closing laps.

Logano had a 1.7-second lead over Busch with five laps to go when Brendan Gaughan produced the last caution of the race with a spinout, setting up the wild finish.

Danica Patrick, making her second start in the series, fell to the rear of the field early in the race and was lapped by the leaders on lap 18. She finished 31st.

Speed TV contributed to this report.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Kyle Busch edges Greg Biffle in NASCAR Nationwide event | Auto racing (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Kyle Busch Wins at California, Danica 31st (abcnews.go.com)
• Kyle Busch edges Greg Biffle; Danica Patrick 31st in Nationwide (sports.espn.go.com)
• Ky. Busch wins Fontana Nationwide; Danica 31st (sportsillustrated.cnn.com)
• Kyle Busch wins Nationwide race, Danica 31st (cbssports.com)

Danica’s Nascar Nationwide Series debut didn’t quite go as she planned.
Just past the halfway point at Daytona International Speedway, Danica got caught up in a 12-car crash not by anything she did wrong.

The Lap 67 crash began when Colin Braun turned Josh Wise on the frontstretch, and chaos ensued behind them. Patrick, who was running 21st at the time of the crash, went low and hit debris, which sent her down toward the infield, where she turned right and went up to the outside wall.

“There’s nothing you could do,” Patrick said.

It was an eventful day for Patrick, she again showed us great car control when she avoided Trevor Bayne’s in turns one and two on lap7, then stalling her car during her second pit stop. I think she was just being really cautious after her crew chief Tony Eury Jr warned her about over revving the engine after her first pit stop.

This certainly not the outcome Danica wanted  for her Nationwide Series debut.

Danica kind of struggle the fist part of the race with an ill handling car describing it pushing a lot through the corners, and having a hard time handling the car. Tony Jr was on the radio a few times telling her she needed to get closer to the cars in front of her so that she wouldn’t loose the draft.

After getting some adjustments during her last pit stop it look as if Danica was alot more confident in her car. She did a much better job of staying with the car in front of her so they could hold on to draft.

I think even though she wrecked out early, Danica show some signs of getting comfortable in the car.

Patrick was confident with what she learned today that she will be better prepared for next year . Patrick said  “This is some really difficult racing, it really is. The cars are definitely on the edge here. As you can see, when somebody gets a little bit out of shape and everybody’s on top of each other.”

Lets hope she can do better next week at California.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Danica, Earnhardt crash out of Daytona race (nbcsports.msnbc.com)
• Patrick in 12-car accident in NASCAR debut (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Patrick Crashes, and the Lessons Pile Up, Too (nytimes.com)
• Danica escapes wreck in debut; C. Wallace out (cbssports.com)

Tony Eury Jr. talks to his driver, Danica Patrick, during ARCA test at Daytona Friday. (Photo courtesy of NASCAR)

Danica Patrick seems to be the only thing in the racing  news. I think that the sport is putting way to much pressure on her to perform. We have seen drivers from other types of racing come over to NASCAR and fail.

I think the people and media need to let her do her thing.

Danica Patrick took her first laps in an ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards stock car during a rain-shortened test session at Daytona International Speedway on Friday afternoon.

Patrick, one of 26 drivers who posted a time during the 35-minute single car run session, was 12th quickest on the charts with a time of 51.095 seconds (176.142 mph) around the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

A trio of three cars fielded by long-time ARCA Racing Series team Venturini Motorsports comprised the top three positions in Friday’s test session, led by full-time series competitor Mikey Kile (49.804 seconds/180.708 mph).

The first of the three-day open test was shortened to just 35 minutes after rain plagued both morning and afternoon hours. Patrick was able to make just four laps at full speed during the session.

“It’s still a car once you get in it,” Patrick said during a post test media center press conference on Friday. “I feel most comfortable once I’m at speed actually. Everything from getting into the car to getting the car started – that part feels quite different to me. It’s not normal to me. The car gets pulled out to pit lane and you get in the car when its in its pit stall in an IndyCar and the getting strapped in part is something that I’ve been familiar with for a long time now so everything is a little bit different but once I get out there I feel good. I feel comfortable.

“These cars can run more lanes on the track. You’re all the way to the wall and the car is good to go there. It’s easier to drive there and in an IndyCar you can’t use quite as many lanes usually. That’s just one of the first things I noticed. The gear shifter has more travel. You have to pull something and no more paddle anymore. The clutch is long. It’s just different stuff. But I wouldn’t say that there is any instinctual stuff that is different which is the best part, right? Because I just get to be a driver and I get to do what I’m used to. I feel comfortable once I get going.

“It does have a little bit of a grassroots feeling because there are a lot of cars sort of unpainted and everything but it’s still a car that I need to learn and I’m unfamiliar with. I have a lot to learn so I’m glad I’m here.”

Although Patrick garnered most of the media attention during Friday testing at Daytona, Venturini Motorsports posted the fastest time overall with driver Mikey Kile, who plans on running the entire 2010 ARCA Racing Series.

“It’s good to unload off the trailer fast,” said Kile. “It was not a sticker run. It was a run in race trim. We didn’t get a lot of laps but this team worked hard during the off season. With three Venturini cars at the top of the charts it shows how hard they worked.”

Kile was followed on the charts by teammates Steve Arpin in the No. 55 Toyota (50.098 seconds/179.648 mph) and Daytona Beach, Florida native Alli Owens in the No 15 Chevrolet (50.375 mph/178.660 mph).

Brandon McReynolds, son of veteran NASCAR crew chief/SPEED commentator Larry McReynolds, was fourth fastest with a 50.375 second/178.660 mph lap around the 2.5-mile speedway during his first laps in an ARCA speedway car. McReynolds does not plan to compete in the February 6 Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 but will use this weekend’s test session to build his superspeedway racing resume and gain track time. He is testing with 2009 ARCA Car Owner Champion Eddie Sharp.

Joey Coulter rounded out the top-5 in his family-owned No. 16 Chevrolet with a 50.627 second/177.771 mph lap. Bryan Silas, Nick Igdalsky, Lance Fenton, Grant Enfinger and Matt Lofton rounded out the top-10.

ARCA Racing Series teams will return for two additional full days of testing on Saturday and Sunday.

Danicamania has arrived in full force.

Danica Patrick has yet to turn a wheel in competition in a stock car, but already she’s become the biggest story of the stock car off-season as she prepares to make her NASCAR debut.

Patrick, who will race a limited NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule in 2010 for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports squad, was at the team’s Mooresville, N.C., shop on Thursday for her first formal session with the NASCAR media.

Later in the day, she will fly to Daytona Beach, Fla., where this weekend she will take part in a three-day open ARCA test to help get her ready for her stock-car debut Feb. 6, 2010 in the season-opening ARCA event at Daytona International Speedway.

Joining Patrick at the event were Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kelley Earnhardt, Tony Eury Jr. and Sr. and Kelly Bires.

Patrick said she will race in as many as 13 NASCAR Nationwide Series races next year, starting Feb. 20 at Auto Club Speedway and then Feb. 27 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Undecided is whether she’ll compete in the season-opening NNS event at Daytona.

“We don’t want to over-commit and under-deliver,” said Patrick, who called the Daytona Nationwide event “basically a Cup race.”

Patricka, who tested last week in Orlando, said she’s ready for the challenge of driving a stock car. “Now it’s time for me to go do my job and do it well,” she said. “I’m pretty excited about this effort,” added Earnhardt.

Video Courtesy of Speed TV