RCR Post Race Report — NNS Phoenix International Raceway

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In: Xfinity Series News

Race Highlights:

  • Richard Childress Racing teammates finished sixth (Austin Dillon), 10th (Brian Scott) and 33rd (Kevin Harvick). 
  • Scott ranks third in the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings, trailing point leader Sam Hornish, Jr. by six points, while Dillon ranks ninth.  
  • The No. 2 Chevrolet team ranks fourth in the Nationwide Series owner championship point standings, with the No. 3 team 12th in the standings and the No. 33 team 13th. 
  • According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Statistics, Dillon ranked third in Quality Passes with 24 throughout the course of the 200-lap race. 
  • Scott earned his second consecutive top-10 finish of the 2013 Nationwide Series season. 
  • Harvick posted the Fastest Lap of the Race for six circuits, while Scott posted four Fastest Laps and Dillon posted one.
  • Kyle Busch earned his first victory of the 2013 Nationwide Series season and was followed to the finish line by Brad Keselowski, Justin Allgaier, Trevor Bayne and Elliott Sadler.
  • The next Nationwide Series race is the NASCAR 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 9. The third race of the 2013 season is scheduled to be televised live on ESPN2 beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and Sirius XM NASCAR Satellite Radio. Racing teammates finished first (Tony Stewart), sixth (Brian Scott) and 21st (Austin Dillon).

 

Brian Scott Drives to a 10th-Place-Finish after a Solid Day at   

Phoenix International Raceway

On the heels of his sixth-place finish at Daytona International Speedway, Brian Scott and the No. 2 Whitetail Chevrolet team picked up their second-consecutive top-10 finish of the 2013 season in the 200-lap event at Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday afternoon. Scott started the Dollar General 200 from the 21st position, but worked his way through the field, moving into the top 15 by lap 14. Battling a tight handling Chevrolet, Scott searched for the best line to continue his charge toward the front of pack. In a race where track position proved to be crucial, Scott showed consistency and perseverance to bring his Whitetail Chevrolet Camaro home with a 10th-place finish. With this second-consecutive top-10 finish the Boise, Idaho native moves to third in driver championship point standings, just six markers out of first.   

  

Start – 21         Finish – 10         Laps Led – 0         Points – 3

 

BRIAN SCOTT QUOTE:

“We had a tough qualifying effort and were behind when we started today. The car was fast, but it was just tough to pass on the hot, slick race track. You could get up to people and making the pass was tough. I’m really proud of the guys that we were able to battle and fight for track position getting a top 10. We’re excited for Vegas, we need to keep the consistency and keep learning.   All-in-all not a bad day and we’ll get better.”

 

 

  

Dillon Earns a Sixth-Place Finish in No. 3 AdvoCare Chevrolet at Phoenix International Raceway

 

Austin Dillon drove Richard Childress Racing’s No. 3 AdvoCare Chevrolet to a sixth-place finish in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday afternoon. Dillon started the 200-lap affair from the sixth position but lost track position in the middle stages of the race as handling issues plagued the No. 3 team. Dillon dropped back to as far as 17th in the running order but pit strategy and adjustments helped the team gain much needed track position. Dillon was scored in the 11th position when the caution flag was displayed with 50 laps remaining in the event, prompting crew chief Danny Stockman to direct the driver down pit road. Although many teams opted to take four tires and fuel, Dillon was serviced with fuel only and positioned in the seventh spot when green flag racing resumed on lap 156. He gained one more position during the final 64 laps to secure a sixth-place finish in the No. 3 AdvoCare Chevrolet.

 

Start – 6          Finish – 6          Laps Led – 0          Points – 9                       

 

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE: 

“This is the stuff championship teams are made of – to be able to take a bad day and turn it into a sixth-place finish. We struggled all day with handling issues and our pit stops were challenging but we all worked together as a team. The track really changed a lot throughout the race.”

 

  

  

    

Harvick and the Rheem/Menards Team Earn a Disappointing 33rd-place Finish at Phoenix International Raceway Despite Promising Run

 

Despite showing speed in the early stages of the race, Kevin Harvick and the No. 33 Rheem/Menards Chevrolet team were relegated to a 33rd-place finish in the Dollar General 200 at Phoenix International Raceway, after a cut right-front tire sent the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular into the outside wall. Harvick started the 200-lap affair from the 10th position and quickly made a charge toward the front of the field. Battling a loose-handling condition, the Bakersfield, Calif., native drove down pit road on lap 40 so the Richard Childress Racing pit crew could bolt on right-side tires, add fuel and make a chassis adjustment. The speedy pit stop positioned Harvick third for the ensuing restart. Back on track, Harvick continued to battle the loose condition and fell back to sixth in the running order. As Harvick circled the track in the yellow and black machine, the right-front tire broke apart just past the halfway mark, sending the car into the outside wall. Unable to repair the damage from the on-track incident, the team’s day came to an early end, forcing them to settle for a 33rd-place result.

 

Start – 10         Finish – 33         Laps Led – 0         Owner Points – 13

 

KEVIN HARVICK QUOTE:

“This definitely wasn’t the best weekend for the No. 33 Rheem/Menards Chevrolet team. We were loose and needed one more adjustment to get ourselves in position to post a good finish today. The crew did a good job making adjustments and we were running some strong lap times, but that tire just blew without warning and ended our day.”

 

RCR PR

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