Richmond 400 at Richmond International Raceway Race Report
May 1, 2010- 1. Kyle Busch, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
- 2. Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Chevrolet
- 3. Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Chevrolet
- 16. Joey Logano, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota
After Two Tough Weeks, Home Depot Team Rebounds to Finish 16th at Richmond
Richmond, Va. (May 1, 2010) – Joey Logano and The Home Depot Team rallied from a lap down and two tough weeks to finish 16th at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday night. It was a race that only saw three cautions in the first 350 laps of short-track racing, but concluded with three in the closing 35. Logano fell a lap down but was able to fight his way up to earn the free pass back onto the lead lap with 20 to go and finish inside the top 20.
"That was a tough night for The Home Depot Team," said Logano. "We didn't expect to be that tight tonight after practicing so well on Friday. Zippy (crew chief Greg Zipadelli) kept adjusting on the car, and it would get pretty good on the long runs, but was so tight for most of it. We did what we needed to do though; we didn't give up, kept making changes and got it good there at the end. After the last few weeks we've had at the track, I will take 16th and head to Darlington."
Logano took the green flag from the 23rd position after his qualifying lap on Friday. The team practiced in the top five in both sessions on Friday, so were optimistic when the race began at the .75-mile track. It took just 10 laps for Logano to radio to Zipadelli and tell him the car was tight through the center of the corners and needed it to turn better. The Home Depot Team would adjust on the car, but Logano fell a lap down to the leader on lap 127 while running in the 20th position. He drove the No. 20 Toyota down pit road for adjustments under green-flag conditions on lap 140. The caution flag finally waved on lap 154 and Zipadelli told his driver to remain on the track if the leaders pit to get the wave around back onto the lead lap. The nine cars remaining on the lead lap all pitted, so the No. 20 Toyota remained on the track. When the one-to-go signal was shown, Logano and several other cars passed the pace car back onto the lead lap.
Racing resumed on lap 160 with Logano in the 18th position. He continued to battle the tight condition through the midpoint of the race. He dropped as far back as 24th on lap 230 and made another green-flag stop on lap 267. He told The Home Depot Team the car was now turning better after the last adjustments and battled his way up to 15th on lap 330, but the leader was once again in his rear-view mirror. He fell a lap down again on lap 335, battled side-by-side with the No. 9 car for several laps before pitting under green-flag conditions on lap 362. When the yellow flag was displayed on lap 367, Zipadelli told Logano to remain on the track and battle for the free pass position (the first car one lap down) with 24 laps remaining in the race. Logano did just that and when the caution flag waved four laps later, Logano once again was back on the lead lap and in the 17th position.
He gained one additional position in the closing laps to finish the 400-lap race in the 16th position while his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch took the checkered flag. Logano slipped one spot in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings to 17th, 100 points out of 12th heading to Darlington Raceway next weekend.
