Feed the Children 300 at Kentucky Speedway (1.5 mile oval, Sparta, Ky.) June 28, 2013 THE RESULTS The No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Ford Mustang Adobe Systems The No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang Driven By Sam Hornish Jr. Driven By Brad Keselowski Start Position 3 Start Position 19 Finish Position 9 Finish Position 1 Status Running Status Running Current Driver Points Position 2 Current Owner Points Position 2 THE RACE REVIEW · Hornish started the race from the third position based on his performance in Friday’s qualify session. · On the opening lap, Hornish moved into second place as he and leader Austin Dillon opened up a large lead over the rest of the field. · Over the first quarter of the race the Penske Truck Rental Ford Mustang ran solidly in the top-three. · As the field began to make the first pit-stops of the night under green, Hornish led a lap to pick up a championship point. · As Hornish exited the pits, a caution flag slowed the field which resulted in the No. 12 Penske Ford temporarily losing a lap to the leaders, but as the first car one lap down, it was given the Lucky Dog. · When the racing action resumed Hornish was scored seventh in the order. · As the race progressed, Hornish reported that his Penske Truck Rental Ford was too tight in the corners. · By lap 110 Hornish had worked his way back into the top-three. · At lap 142, Hornish brought the Penske Truck Rental machine to the pits to for service. During the stop, the car fell off the jack resulting in slightly-prolonged stop and the loss of a few positions. · The Penske Mustang continued to be too tight as Hornish kept his car inside the top-10. · At lap 165, the caution flag was displayed for light rain, and then at lap 170 the race was red flagged and eventually called due to heavy rain. · Hornish finished in ninth-place and moved up to second-place in the standings – just nine points out of first place. · Keselowski and the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang team began the race from the 19th position following the Friday afternoon qualifying session. · Despite starting deep in the field, Keselowski immediately began to show that his Ford Mustang had plenty of speed to contend for the win as he methodically made his way toward the front of the field. · Following hard, side-by-side racing with Kyle Busch, Keselowski was able to grab the lead for the first time at lap 99. · Aside from giving up the lead for trips down pit road, the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) champion led most of the laps from the time he took the lead to lap 165. · At lap 165 a brief rain shower brought out the caution flag before heavy rains forced NASCAR to stop the race at lap 170 with Keselowski in the top spot. It is Keselowski’s first rain-shortened win. · The victory is the fourth of the year for the No. 22 team and their second in-a-row after AJ Allemdinger’s victory at Road America last weekend. It’s also Keselowski’s second-consecutive series victory in 2012. It was Keselowski’s 22nd career NNS victory, entering him into a tie with Sam Ard and Tommy Ellis for 10th place on the all-time wins list. WHAT THEY ARE SAYING SAM HORNISH JR. TELL US ABOUT YOUR RACE. “We had a fast Ford Mustang for the first 100 laps of the race. We were able to run in the top-three for much of the night, but during the last half of the race our Penske Truck Rental Ford lost pace. We made adjustments over the course of the race, but we did not stay ahead of the track conditions. Then the rain came, and that took away any chance we had of working our way back to the front. It is a little frustrating to run that strong early in the race, and then finish ninth. The good news is that tonight’s top-10 was enough to move us up to second in the point standings, and we are only eight points out of the lead. There is still a lot of racing to do this year, and as we witnessed tonight this championship is going to come down to consistent top-finishes. We are in a good spot right now, and we’re going to keep working to improve.” BRAD KESELOWSKI HOW GRATIFYING IS THIS WIN? “You know, I didn’t want it to end this way but we had a great Discount Tire Ford and we were able to drive to the front. We didn’t qualify like we wanted to but Jeremy Bullins and this team did a great job. They have been working so well with Greg Erwin and Sam Hornish’s team. We deserve these results. I feel lucky to get to drive this car. The last two drivers before have won races in it and Ryan Blaney is going to get to drive it and hopefully he will get to win in it to. It was just a great car tonight. This is the type of car you get once a year if you are lucky.” JEREMY BULLINS, CREW CHIEF YOU HAVE WON FOUR RACES WITH THREE DIFFERENT DRIVERS. WHAT IS YOUR SECRET? “There is no secret, it is just that I am surrounded by a great organization and guys at the shop are building good race cars. We have Roush Yates engines with great horsepower and great fuel mileage. Our pit crew has done a phenomenal job coming together and this race team is getting stronger and I think working together and, like Brad said, momentum. Anytime you can get yourself up front that is contagious. It is just a matter of keeping that going.” MEDIA RECAP · Practice Interview: PRN taped an interview with Hornish during practice. · Pre-Qualifying: Fox Sports TV did a live interview with Hornish prior to his qualification run · Post-Qualifying: Fox Sports TV did a live interview with Hornish after his qualifying run. · Pre-Race: ESPN did a live with interview with Hornish prior to Driver Introductions. · In-Race: ESPN interviewed Hornish during the red flag · Media availability: Keselowski’s held media availability with a majority of the NASCAR media corps on Thursday afternoon. · In-Race Reporter: Keselowski was the ESPN in-race reporter for Friday night’s race. · Post-Qualifying: Keselowski was interviewed by the SPEED Channel. · Post-Race: Keselowski was interviewed by ESPN2, SPEED Channel, Sirius NASCAR Radio and several local affiliates. WEEKEND APPEARANCES · June 27: Hornish visited the Cintas Headquarters in Mason, Ohio · June 28: Hornish made an appearance at the Ford Display in the Fan Zone.
Posted on: Sat, 29 Jun 2013 20:23:43 +0000
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