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Michael McDowell top Raybestos Rookie in Dodge Challenger 500

Sunday May 11, 2008

 

Where the Raybestos Rookie finished at Darlington:
McDowell 28th
Smith 29th
Hornish Jr. 38th
Carpentier 40th

UNOFFICIAL Raybestos Rookie standings:
Smith 107
Hornish Jr. 105
Carpentier 73
Franchitti 72
McDowell 56
Villeneuve 1

RAYBESTOS ROOKIE CONTENDER QUOTES FOR THE DODGE CHALLENGER 500 NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES RACE AT DARLINGTON RACEWAY, MAY 10, 2008.

SAM HORNISH JR., No. 77 MOBIL 1 DODGE: “I’m pretty sure that we had a right front tire go down. I went down in there and the front end, as soon as I turned in it just went straight. The car was handling real good. We moved up a couple of spots already. I felt really good about what the Mobil 1 Dodge was going to be able to do today. The days when we feel like we’re really out to lunch we kind of go out and run without a hitch and then the days we feel like we’re going to go out there and get top-15, top-10 runs we have problems. We’ll have to figure out how to get around that sooner or later.”

MICHAEL MCDOWELL IN THE No. 00 BRAIN CANCER ACTION WEEK TOYOTA WAS THE TOP RAYBESTOS ROOKIE IN TONIGHT’S RACE AT DARLINGTON.

Notes:

· McDowell posted a 28th-place finish and took top Raybestos Rookie honors for the first time in 2008.

Patrick Carpentier led tonight’s race twice for four laps. He was the only freshman driver to lead and was the first Raybestos Rookie to lead a lap at Darlington since Kasey Kahne in 2004 (three times for 24 laps).

· UNOFFICIALLY Regan Smith holds a two-point lead (107-105) over Sam Hornish Jr. in the Raybestos Rookie standings.

MCDOWELL: YOU HAD A RESPECTABLE RUN HERE TONIGHT. “It is. It’s tough for me because my expectations are so high and they might not be realistic but they are what they are [smiles]. I get down and frustrated. I don’t want to run 28th and I don’t want to run 26th. We want to run better. The guys gave me a great car today. I had a couple of bad runs there where I just couldn’t get back in my rhythm, you know, running there a lap down and the leaders are trying to get by. And this place is so tough when somebody tries to get by you, if you don’t give way, you end up slowing the whole pack down and getting ran over. That was my biggest thing is just learning how to give a little but not lose a lot and today I gave a lot and lost a lot [smiles] and probably cost myself a lap by doing it. But we finished and that’s what we needed to do. I think we’re the highest finishing Raybestos Rookie so that’s good, that’s our first time. We qualified well this weekend and that was a big thing that we wanted to work on. It’s just going to take us a little bit of time to get going but I think we’re heading in the right direction. It wasn’t bad. I feel bad for the guys. They deserve to run better. Obviously our cars are capable of running better because our teammates ran up there. David ran 19th so that’s a good finish for them. We’re just going to keep plugging away. It’s not easy by any means and I knew it wasn’t going to be. Hopefully I’ll be able to figure it out quickly here.” IS THIS A BUILDING BLOCK FOR YOUR SEASON? “Yeah, especially here. This has to be the toughest place we go to maybe other than Lowe’s, the 600. I’ve got ‘em back to back because I’m not running the all-star. The biggest thing is these races are long and they’re mentally straining and physically straining. These guys that have been doing it for 10 years it’s like no big deal, a no brainer, and for me it takes a lot of effort. I’ve just got to keep plugging away at it and keep learning as much as I can an come back better every time.”

REGAN SMITH, No. 01 THE PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL GROUP CHEVROLET: YOU FELL BEHIND EARLY BUT CAME BACK TO POST A RESPECTABLE FINISH. “We left some lug nuts loose there. The clutch kept on engaging on me and the guys missed lug nuts when that happened. But we recovered and scored a decent finish. We had a 20th-place racecar but we finished the race and that’s half the battle. We’ll go to Charlotte and have fun.”

PATRICK CARPENTIER, No. 10 LIFELOCK DODGE: WHAT PUT YOU OUT OF THE RACE? “Something broke in the engine there. It’s the first one that I ever had. I don’t know what happened there so they’re going to look at it. But I mean that car was fast at the beginning of the race. We were running some really fast laps and passed Junior and passed a lot of guys. It was fun and then we lost a couple of laps down pit lane and after that I plowed into the wall at the exit of two and lost a lot of downforce. The car was so fast tonight. It was fun. I could pass cars and enjoy it but I lost a points again so that’s disappointing.” WHAT ARE YOUR IMPRESSIONS ABOUT RACING HERE AT DARLINGTON? “I love it. It was a lot of fun. The car we had this weekend we got a chance to do a lot of laps. The car was so fast. We were passing cars in the beginning and it was fun. I really enjoyed it. My car was hooked up. I’ve got to thank LifeLock and Dodge and the team. We’ve got to get the pits a little bit better there and just bad luck in those races. We can never finish ‘em and get the points so hopefully the next one we do.” YOU LED SOME LAPS TONIGHT. “Tonight was a step ahead again. I mean, we led on an oval and for a guy that did road course and stuff I’m happy. We keep learning but once we lost laps in the pits there’s nothing I can do. I can’t battle with the guys. They all get pissed off and they would try to turn you around and then after that we had a mechanical failure. But at the beginning I passed Junior, a lot of guys, and I was having a blast. It’s fun. It’s coming. We just don’t have any luck at all.”

®Raybestos® brand brakes are produced by the Affinia Under Vehicle Group, the leading manufacturer of braking systems and components for the automotive industry. The line includes everything from brake drums to rotors, pads, shoes and hydraulic parts. Affinia Under Vehicle Group is at the forefront of research and development in brake technology and operates manufacturing and distribution facilities throughout North America.

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This report was provided by an outside PR source and posted by Kim DeHaven.

 

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