Race Highlights:
- Richard Childress Racing teammates Paul Menard, Ryan Newman and Austin Dillon finished fourth, 15th and 30th, respectively.
- Newman ranks 11th in the Sprint Cup Series championship point standings, trailing current leader Jeff Gordon by 97 points, while Menard ranks 13th and Dillon ranks 17th.
- Jimmie Johnson earned his third victory of the 2014 season and was followed to the finish line by Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Menard and Kasey Kahne.
- The next Sprint Cup Series race is the Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 22, which is scheduled to be televised live on TNT beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern Time and is scheduled to be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Satellite Radio, channel 90.
Late-Race Issues Spoil a Top-10 Run for Austin Dillon at Michigan International Speedway
Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon ran in the top 10 for a majority of Sunday’s Quicken Loans 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway, but ultimately earned a 30th-place finish after making two unscheduled pit stops in the closing laps of the 200-lap event. Dillon started the No. 3 Dow Chevrolet from the 19th spot and showed speed from the start of the event, advancing into the top 15 within the first 50 laps despite battling a loose-handling condition on entry to the corners. A quick pit stop by the RCR crew during a caution on lap 74 helped propel Dillon into the top 10 in the running order. Towards the end, Dillon was running in the top five with 25 laps remaining. He led a lap before making a trip down pit road on lap 189 for fuel only. Just one lap following his pit stop, Dillon was forced to make a second trip down pit road to change the left-side tires for concerns of a flat tire. A third stop was required one stop later to change the right-side tires relegating Dillon to a 30th-place finish, three laps down from the race leader.
Start – 19th Finish – 30th Laps Led – 1 Points – 17th
AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:
“I try to convince myself that luck isn’t a factor, but today luck sure didn’t seem to be on our side. This team put in a solid effort and we have to be proud of everyone’s hard work. We were in contention for a top-10 finish all day, but that’s just not how the cards fell today.”
Paul Menard Earns Second Top-Five Finish at Michigan in No. 27 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet
Paul Menard drove Richard Childress Racing’s No. 27 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet SS to a fourth-place finish in Sunday’s 400-mile event at Michigan International Speedway. The Eau Claire, Wisc., native started fifth and was fast from the start, scored in the top 10 for more than half of the 200-mile event. Menard fought a loose-handling car in traffic but radioed it felt tight when he was in clean air. The Slugger Labbe-led team was able to provide relief for Menard during the lap 72 caution with four tires, fuel, wedge and track bar adjustments. Strategy came into play during the lap 147 caution when the No. 27 Pittsburgh Paint/Menards team decided to stay on track rather than pit. The decision gave Menard valuable track position to race in the third spot when the field went green on lap 150. Ahead of fuel strategy, the Richard Childress Racing team was able to stay on track for the remainder of the race to finish in the fourth position. The finish marks Menard’s second top-five and eighth top-10 finish of 2014. Up next for the No. 27 team is Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series road-course race at Sonoma Raceway.
Start – 5th Finish – 4th Laps Led – 0 Points – 13th
PAUL MENARD QUOTE:
Richard Childress Racing driver Ryan Newman drove the No. 31 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS to a 15th-place finish in Sunday’s Quicken Loans 400. The South Bend, Ind., native started 24th and quickly dodged two crashes in the first 10 laps. Newman reported a mostly neutral-handling condition in Turns 1, 2 and 4 while Turn 3 experienced an extremely loose condition through the corner throughout the 200-lap event. The Luke-Lambert led team made a series of chassis changes on laps 39, 103 and 125 that allowed Newman to race as high as 10th and as low as 19th. With 10 laps to go and in second place as a result of the green-flag pit cycle, the No. 31 pitted for a splash of fuel. Newman returned to the track and crossed the finish line in the 15th position. The result keeps Newman in 11th place in the championship point standings. Next Sunday the Sprint Cup Series competes at its first road-course event of the season at Sonoma Raceway.
Start: 24th Finish: 15th Laps Led: 0 Point Standings: 11th
Ryan Newman Quote:
“We ran fairly neutral all day but in Turn 3. We were really loose especially behind another car. Our biggest problem was we could never really go anywhere with it. I want to thank Quicken Loans and all of their team members for all of their support this season and, of course, today. What a big weekend for them. I wish we could have earned a better finish, but we’re still in the hunt. I look forward to next weekend’s road course at Sonoma.”
RCR PR
