• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - finished 17th - now 16th in points.
• David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry - finished 18th - 19th in points.
David Reutimann Race Summary: David Reutimann and the Aaron’s Dream Machine finished 18th on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway, snapping a string of six consecutive top-15 finishes. The Michael Waltrip Racing team battled both tight and loose handling conditions as well as changing track conditions throughout the 400-mile race. Reutimann spent most of the day in the top-15, but climbed as high as eighth and fell as low as 28th before finishing the race 18th. The Sprint Cup Series now travels to Infineon Raceway in California for Sunday’s race.
David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry
• Following a green flag stop on lap 87, Reutimann raced in 13th saying the car was the best it had been all day.
• Restarted 11th after a two-tire stop just past the halfway point, but a loose condition dropped him to 25th by lap 135.
• Reutimann moved up to 17th by lap 165, but fell to 27th after a green flag stop to fix the vibration on lap 171
• By lap 181, the No. 00 was back up to 15th position for the final restart and battled to finish 18th.
REUTIMANN QUOTE: "We just struggled all day. We never really got the Aaron's Dream Machine exactly how we wanted. We'd be a little loose, then a little tight. I feel like the track conditions kept changing and we'd get it for a short time, but could never keep it for very long. My pit crew and team did a great job and we kept at it and tried to make the best of our day. I'm disappointed, but we just have to move on and keep getting better."
Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. and the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS team overcame a number of obstacles before catching a timely caution in the closing laps Sunday to salvage a 17th-place finish at Michigan International Speedway. With less than 25 laps remaining, Truex Jr. and the No. 56 team were a lap down due to poor handling and an extra pit stop because of a loose lug nut. Tryson kept Truex on the track hoping for a caution that came with 19 laps remaining when NASCAR spotted debris on the backstretch. The caution allowed the No. 56 to come to pit road for adjustments and return to the lead lap in 18th-place. Truex gained a spot over the final 16 laps to finish 17th. Truex Jr. and the Michael Waltrip Racing team next travel to Infineon Raceway in California for Sunday’s race.
Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota
• The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota started 13th, but struggled to find grip early and fell to 25th by lap 20.
• The “NAPA Know How” pit crew picked up seven spots during the lap 49 pit stops.
• Truex raced in 25th position at the halfway point.
• Truex pitted on lap 139, but returned five laps later because of a loose lug nut dropping him to 31st.
• By lap 160 his lap times were the same as the leader and returned to the lead lap on final caution at lap 180.
• Finished 17th and is now 16th in the point standings.
TRUEX QUOTE: "What a way to recover and survive. It was going to be an ugly day if that caution (lap 181) didn't come out. We got behind and lost a lap when a tire was left loose and had to come in and pit again under green. I wasn't going to get on my guys because they have done a great job for me all season. I just told them on the radio to keep their chin up. We got the break we needed and it put us back on the lead lap. I thought we were going to be better today because we had good practices yesterday. I could have spun out a 100 times, but we just stayed smart. By halfway we were a lot better. We were tight in traffic but really good in clean air. That made it tough on restarts because I had chances to pass, but (the car) just plowed in traffic. We just need to keep getting better because the opportunity is there for us. I think we got ourselves some points and I am real proud of all my guys for hanging in there and rallying together for a respectable finish."
RACE NOTES:
• Denny Hamlin won for the second consecutive week and the fifth time in 2010
• Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart rounded out the top-five
• The race lasted two hours thirty-three minutes in front of an estimated crowd of 95,000
• The race featured 18 lead changes among nine drivers
• The race was slowed by four cautions for a total of 14 laps
• The next race is Sunday at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.
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