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05.17.15
Sprint All-Star Race Post-Report
Date: May 16, 2015
Event: Sprint All-Star Race (non-points event)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Start/Finish: 6th/20th (Running, completed 78 of 110 laps)
Winner: Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
A mechanical failure left Danica Patrick and the No. 10 Mobil 1/Aspen Dental Chevrolet SS team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) with a 20th-place finish in Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
The 31st annual non-points race featured drivers who met one of the following requirements:
· Won a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race in 2014 or 2015.
· Is a past All-Star Race winner who is a full-time Sprint Cup competitor.
· Is a Sprint Cup champion who is a full-time Sprint Cup competitor.
· Won the first segment of Friday night’s Sprint Showdown.
· Won the second segment of Friday night’s Sprint Showdown.
· Won the Sprint Fan Vote.
Patrick secured the Sprint Fan Vote following the Sprint Showdown to earn a spot in Saturday’s non-points event.
The 110-lap race around the 1.5-mile oval was broken up into five segments of 25 laps, 25 laps, 25 laps, 25 laps and 10 laps and featured a 20-driver field.
Patrick qualified sixth for the event, but she had to drop to the rear of the field prior to the start of the race because the team changed engines following Friday’s Sprint Showdown.
In the first All-Star segment, Patrick raced her way up to the 17th position. She reported that the car was over-rotating a bit too much, so crew chief Daniel Knost called for a four-tire stop with packer, wedge and air pressure adjustments when the field hit pit road.
Patrick started the second segment from the 19th position and worked her way up to 16th before the caution flag waved at lap 50. The team changed four tires and added fuel between segments, and Patrick lined up in the 14th position when the field took the green flag for the third segment.
A left-front wheel hub failure sent Patrick to the garage a few laps into the third segment. The team replaced the hub and Patrick rejoined the field at lap 88. She completed the remainder of the race and was credited with a 20th-place finish.
“Overall, I feel positive about tonight,” Patrick said. “You obviously never want to have a mechanical failure like we did, but my guys busted their butts to get me back out, and we were able to get a few more laps in to help us prepare for next weekend. You’d never turn down nearly 25 extra laps of practice, and we were able to get back out there and see what the Mobil 1/Aspen Dental Chevrolet would do. I feel like we made some good changes tonight and were able to gain experience and information that should help us for next weekend.”
Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Hunt Brothers Pizza Chevrolet, led the way for SHR Saturday night by finishing second in the Sprint All-Star Race. It was the second-straight year Harvick finished second in the event, and it was his fourth top-five in 15 career All-Star Races.
Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet for SHR, finished third after leading twice for 24 laps. It was Busch’s sixth top-five in 15 career All-Star Races.
Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Arctic Cat Chevrolet SS for SHR, dealt with a tight-handling racecar and finished 19th.
Denny Hamlin won the All-Star Race to earn his first victory in nine career All-Star Races. His previous best finish was a pair of fourth-place results in 2009 and 2010.
Harvick finished .923 of a second behind Hamlin in the runner-up spot, while Busch, Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth rounded out the top-five. Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr. comprised the remainder of the top-10.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to points-paying racing on Sunday, May 24 with the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. The longest race on the Sprint Cup schedule gets underway at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning at 5:30 p.m.