Talladega Cup Race Recap

07 October 2007 TALLADEGA GETS THE BEST OF WOOD BROTHERS/JTG TEAM

It was billed as a weekend where anything could happen, and probably would. The UAW-GM 500 marked the first time this year that the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup teams used the Car of Tomorrow at a race track longer than one mile in length. Topping it off, this event was an impound race, meaning there was no work done on the cars following Saturday's qualifying session. Ken Schrader, driving the No. 21 Motorcraft Ford, posted the third fastest time in the draft during Friday's first practice session. But the team elected to stay in race trim for Saturday's qualifying draw and ended up 42nd on the grid for Sunday's event.

As the race got underway, the drivers were extra wary of the unknown factors of racing 500 miles in the new style chassis. Everything went smoothly for the first 16 laps until the No. 49 car of John Andretti slapped the wall just under the flag stand on the front stretch. That allowed crew chief Michael McSwain to bring Schrader down pit road two laps later for adjustments. Schrader had radioed that the car was just a little loose throughout the corners. The team adjusted the air pressure, changed four tires and send Schrader back out onto the track in 22nd place for the lap 24 restart.

All of the drivers began to settle out and by lap 40, there was a remarkable-looking 43 cars all in a single file line, nose-to-tail. Schrader was holding down the 29th spot. On lap 57, Schrader and seven other cars slowed going into turn three and lined up to come down pit road for a regularly scheduled stop. The team changed four tires and refueled the car and Schrader was able to leave pit road with drafting help back out onto the track. When the field was reshuffled after all pits stops, Schrader cycled back to 27th place in the running order.

All participants continued to be on their best behavior over the next 30 green flag laps. Schrader was being shown in 25th place, tightly packed in the draft between Kevin Harvick and fellow Ford driver, Robby Gordon. A lap-92 caution, the event's third, broke up the monotony. This again gave the Wood Brothers/JTG team an opportunity to tune up the car on pit road. The team decided to add some tape to the front grille to assist with the front down force. The halfway point of the race passed on lap 94 under the yellow flag with Schrader shown in the 34th spot. On the lap 96 restart after pitting, the 21 car restarted 37th. Things remained calm on the track for another dozen laps until the engine on Martin Truex' machine expired, bringing out the fourth caution. After pitting, Schrader restarted 37th on lap 116.

By lap 130, the pace was starting to pick up and the pack was definitely getting geared up for the finish at lap 188. Schrader was locked in a duel at the back of the lead pack, dicing for positions at the top and bottom of the race track through the tri-oval. He was up to 31st spot, but the next 20 positions were all within two seconds of his front bumper. By lap 133, he was up to 23rd position in the middle of the lead draft. For several laps, it looked as if disaster was looming for the pack, but a blown motor on the No. 8 car brought out the fifth caution flag of the day, allowing everyone a breather. The next lap, the team came down pit road for service and McSwain called for a fuel only stop and no tires in an effort to gain track position. Schrader gained several positions to restart 22nd on lap 140.

All day long, the field was expecting the "Big One" and on lap 145, they got a minor version as eight cars tangled coming off of turn four, bringing out the sixth caution flag of the day. Under the direction of spotter Chip Ross, Schrader was guided to the center of the track and avoided plowing into the mess. "Alright boys," radioed Schrader, "we need four tires, but we have no damage." The team came down pit road and changed tires, got enough fuel to make it the rest of the way and returned to competition in 15th place on lap 150. Unfortunately, that's just about when the team's luck ran out. On lap 153, Schrader blew a right rear tire, sending the No. 21 Motorcraft Ford hard into the wall betweens turn three and four. The car was too damaged to continue and the team was credited with a 31st place finish on the day.

WHAT THE TEAM HAS TO SAY: Ken Schrader, Driver of the No. 21 Motorcraft Ford: "I'm just so mad right now because I could feel the tire maybe going a lap or two before. I was just about to say something when it went. I've got to give a lot of credit to my guys today. Their work on pit road was excellent and kept us up with the pack all day. It just wasn't meant to be for us today."

Michael McSwain, Crew Chief of the No. 21 Motorcraft Ford: "I hate that we had the day end like this, but I'm just thankful that Ken's alright. That looked like a pretty good hit on the replay. We can fix the car again, but we don't need our driver getting hurt out here. I'm real proud of the guys today on pit road—they were on their A-Game all afternoon and it showed. We'll regroup and get after ‘em at Charlotte next week."

FAST & FUN FACTS: -Ken Schrader drove the No. 21 Motorcraft Ford to a 31st place finish in the UAW-GM 500 event at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday. -Jeff Gordon won the event, followed to the line by Jimmie Johnson, Dave Blaney, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman rounded out the top-five finishers on the day.

NEXT RACE INFORMATION: What -- Bank of America 500 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Event When -- Saturday, October 13th, 2007; 7:30 p.m. EDT Where -- Lowe's Motor Speedway; 334 laps; 501 miles Network --ABC Television Network; PRN Radio Network

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Jeffrey Cheatham, PR -- Wood Brothers/JTG Racing (704) 658-6098