Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway Race Report
June 20, 2010- 1. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Chevrolet
- 2. Robby Gordon, No. 7 Toyota
- 3. Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Chevrolet
- 33. Joey Logano, No. 20 The Home Depot Toyota
The Home Depot Team Finishes 33rd at Sonoma Road Course
Sonoma, Calif. (June 20, 2010) –Joey Logano and The Home Depot Team did not have the road-course outing they were hoping for at Infineon Raceway on Sunday. Logano was spun on lap 84 of the 110-lap event and received front-end damage late in the race causing the engine to expire with two laps to go. The team finished 33rd in the Toyota Save/Mart 350 and remain 17th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings.
"I think we were going to be OK in The Home Depot Toyota," said Logano. "The car would start out tight, and then be so loose by the end of a run I couldn't get off the corner. Zippy (crew chief Greg Zipadelli) unhooked the swaybar midrace and that really seemed to help the car turn better and we started to make progress. Unfortunately we got spun out and then got front-end damage on one of the restarts that caved in the nose and the engine was just done with about three laps to go. It was an extremely frustrating race, but we need to put it behind us and look ahead to Loudon."
Qualifying for the first of two road-course races occurred on Friday, with Logano posting a time quick enough for the 20th position. The team worked on fine tuning The Home Depot Toyota and fuel mileage on Saturday during the two practice sessions in preparation for the Sunday race.
Shortly after the green flag waved Logano began struggling with the handling on The Home Depot Toyota. He dropped back to the 28th position by the third lap of the race and was having trouble getting off the corners, especially in the turn 11 hairpin. The first caution flag waved on lap 11 after a multi-car incident involving Logano's teammate Kyle Busch. Zipadelli called Logano down pit road for fresh tires, an air pressure adjustment in the front tires and fuel. Racing resumed on lap 13 with The Home Depot Toyota in the 26th position.
Logano worked his way up to the 23rd position when green-flag pit stops began on lap 28. Logano drove the No. 20 Toyota into the pits on lap 31 for a trackbar adjustment, tires and fuel on lap 31. Cars were now on different pit sequences and fuel strategies, so it wasn't until lap 40 when pit stops cycled through. At the midpoint of the race Logano was shown in the 23rd position.
The caution flag finally waved on lap 57 and Zipadelli knew the team would have to make a big change on the next stop to help Logano off the corners. While Joey was in the pits for tires and fuel, the team unhooked the rear swaybar. The extra time it took in the pits dropped Logano back to the 32nd position for the restart on lap 61. Logano drove up to the 28th position in just two laps, but a melee broke out behind The Home Depot Toyota bringing out the yellow flag and eventually the red flag. Once the track was cleared racing resumed on lap 69 with Logano back up to 20th. Logano broke into the top 15 on lap 72 and told the team the car was much better off the corners.
Unfortunately for the team, Logano never got to see what he could do with The Home Depot Toyota after the handling improved. He was spun on lap 84 by the No. 42 car. After the team put on fresh tires, the field checked up on the restart and Logano received front end damage. The caved in nose hindered the air flow into the engine, which eventually gave way with two laps to go. Logano finished the race in the 33rd position, two laps down. His teammates Denny Hamlin and Busch also had tough days at Infineon and finished 34th and 39th respectively.
Logano and The Home Depot Team will defend their 2009 race win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway next weekend. The race airs on TNT television and PRN radio with live racing coverage beginning at 1 p.m. ET.
