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05.31.15
FedEx 400 Post-Report
Date: May 31, 2015
Event: FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks (Round 13 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Dover (Del.) International Speedway (1-mile oval)
Start/Finish: 33rd/15th (running, completed 403 of 405 laps)
Point Standing: 18th (321 points, 195 out of first)
Winner: Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet SS team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), finished 15th in Sunday’s FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. The effort marked Patrick’s career-best NASCAR Sprint Cup Series finish in six starts at the Monster Mile.
After starting the race in the 33rd position, Patrick raced her way into the top-25 by lap 95 and was racing as high as 23rd before she received slight damage from an accident, not of her own fault, on lap 176. The team was forced to pit due to the grill separating from the nose of the No. 10 Chevrolet. This unscheduled stop landed the team one lap down.
Crew chief Daniel Knost’s pit strategy paid off on lap 260 when, instead of pitting under green one lap earlier, the team decided to stay out for an additional lap, at which time the caution-flag flew and Patrick found herself back on the lead lap. Patrick pitted under the caution, and changes were made to attempt to free up her Chevy SS. The changes worked, and Patrick quickly began gaining track positions once the race went back to green.
The GoDaddy team was up to 13th on lap 270 and racing forward. Patrick’s Chevy SS tightened slightly as it raced through traffic, and she settled into a top-14 spot until her next green-flag pit stop on lap 307. After pitting, Patrick fell back to 27th. But as the other racecars cycled through a long pit cycle, she worked her way forward, running in the top-20 by lap 356 and maintaining track position for the next 30 laps.
When the caution came on lap 387, Patrick was racing in the 17th position. She passed two additional cars and raced her way into the top-15 in a green-white-checkered finish.
“I’m proud of our GoDaddy Chevrolet team,” Patrick said. “We all stuck together and dug deep. It was a challenging race, but we made the most out of each situation. We have a ways to go still, but everyone on our crew did a good job. We had good pit stops and made strides through the race. We win or lose as a team, and this top-15 finish was a total team effort. I’m confident we can build on this heading into the next few races.”
Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 ditech Chevrolet SS, led the four-car SHR contingent Sunday at Dover by finishing second.
Harvick led twice for 91 laps to bring his laps-led total at Dover to 483. He has now led 1,123 total laps through the first 13 races of 2015, eclipsing his laps-led total for every Sprint Cup season with the exception of last year, when he led 2,137 laps en route to the Sprint Cup championship. It was Harvick’s ninth top-two finish this season and his fourth top-five in 29 career Sprint Cup starts at Dover.
Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Code 3 Associates/Mobil 1 Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 16th to earn his 24th top-20 result in 32 career Sprint Cup starts at Dover.
Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 31st after being collected in an accident on lap 386 when he was running among the top-10.
Jimmie Johnson won the FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks to score his 74th career Sprint Cup victory, his fourth this season and his 10th at Dover. Johnson became just the fifth driver in Sprint Cup history to have 10 or more wins at a single track, joining NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty, David Pearson, Darrell Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt.
Harvick finished .435 of a second behind Johnson, while Kyle Larson, Kasey Kahne and Aric Almirola rounded out the top-five. Martin Truex Jr., Jamie McMurray, Paul Menard, Clint Bowyer and Jeff Gordon comprised the remainder of the top-10.
There were seven caution periods for 40 laps, with four drivers failing to finish the 405-lap race, which was extended from its scheduled 400-lap distance by a green-white-checkered finish.
With round 13 of 36 complete, Harvick leads SHR in the championship point standings. He is first with 516 points, 44 ahead of second-place Truex. Busch is 15th with 340 points, 176 out of first. Patrick is 18th with 321 points, 195 out of first. Stewart is 28th with 230 points, 286 out of first.
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the Axalta “We Paint Winners” 400 on Sunday, June 7 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. The race starts at 1 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX Sports 1.