SCHRADER 19TH AT DOVER; REMAINS 29TH IN POINTS

 

Ken Schrader did not let Dover International Speedway defeat him Sunday.  He drove his Little Debbie Snacks Ford Fusion to a 19th place finish on Delaware’s “Monster Mile”. 

 

Dover is a fast high-banked concrete mile. If your car isn’t just right it is difficult to stay ahead of the leaders.  On lap 138 Ken lost that skirmish for the first time.

 

And, getting Schrader’s car right during the Dover 400 took adjustments. Short runs did not help the process; although 10 cautions gave the Little Debbie team opportunities to make the necessary changes.  But Ken’s Ford needed long runs to be competitive.

 

When the race ended Schrader was three laps down, but so were a lot of others, so his 19th on the results sheet was more than a respectable finish.

 

In fact, it also came as a pleasant surprise to the driver.  When Crew Chief Michael “Fatback” McSwain told him he had ended up 19th Ken responded:  “We finished 19?  If so, that was a heck of a job in the pits today and figuring the fuel.

 

“The pit crew had a couple of really good stops. Dover is tough.  Either your car is right or it isn’t, but we’re getting there.  We’ve got eight races left and plan to make the most of them.”

 

The pit crew completed its final four-tire and fuel stop in 12.5 seconds.  The crew’s first stop, that included a track bar adjustment, took only 12.36 seconds.

 

And, the car responded better toward the end of the race.    

 

Jeff Burton and Matt Kenseth put on a show for the fans during the final quarter of the event putting on a close race for the lead and the win.  Burton passed Kenseth six laps from the checkered flag and on the final lap Kenseth ran out of fuel handing Burton his first win since the 32nd race of the 2001 season in Phoenix.

 

Burton also took over the lead in the Chase for the Championship.  Kenseth’s 10th place finish Sunday afternoon dropped him to third in the standings.  Jeff Gordon was third today, and is now second in points.

 

Tony Stewart maintained 11th place and his lead of the “best of the rest” in the point standings.

 

Ken stayed in 29th, 104 out of 28th.

 

This coming weekend the Cup competitors will be in the country’s heartland at Kansas Speedway.  The Banquet 400 will be contested on Sunday, October 1 at the Kansas 1.5-mile tri-oval.  NBC will carry the live telecast beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET.  The Motor Racing Network will also broadcast the race live over its network of radio affiliates.    

 

Dover results:

  1. Jeff Burton
  2. Carl Edwards
  3. Jeff Gordon
  4. Kurt Busch
  5. Greg Biffle
  6. Martin Truex, Jr.
  7. Bobby Labonte
  8. Clint Bowyer
  9. Denny Hamlin
  10. Matt Kenseth

   19.  Ken Schrader

 

Points after Dover:

  1. Jeff Burton                            5351
  2. Jeff Gordon                           5345
  3. Matt Kenseth                         5333
  4. Denny Hamlin                        5333
  5. Kevin Harvick                        5297
  6. Mark Martin                           5276
  7. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.               5249
  8. Jimmie Johnson                   5215
  9. Kasey Kahne                         5169
  10. Kyle Busch                             5127

29.         Ken Schrader                       2459