In a three hour and 55 minute battle at Dover International Speedway, Jamie McMurray and the No. 26 IRWIN Industrial Tools team pulled together to earn their eighth top-10 finish of the season. After coming close to going a lap down on lap 203, being caught in a wreck on lap 228, and avoiding a huge late-race wreck on lap 385, McMurray posted an eighth-place finish at the "Monster Mile.”
Trouble struck for McMurray on lap 203, as he was racing the No. 42 machine of Juan Pablo Montoya. McMurray’s car was hit from behind as he exited turn two, sending McMurray spinning down the backstretch. McMurray was able to keep his car off the wall and out of trouble. Quickly, the No. 26 team was on pit wall and ready to change the tires, as McMurray knew he had at least one tire going flat. In an effort to maintain their position on the lead lap,Crew Chief Larry Carter calledMcMurray down pit road for left-side tires. On the ensuing lap, Carter called McMurray back down pit road for right-side tires. And two laps later, Carter radioed McMurray again down pit road for additional service to the car. During the final stop, the team pulled out the fenders and added tape to the right-rear quarter panel. McMurray returned to the race track in the 15th position and on the lead lap thanks to the heads-up call from Carter.
Following a restart on lap 361, McMurray noted the handling on his race car was still too tight, but felt like he could continue and maintain his position. On lap 385 a large wreck started off of turn two as the No. 2 car hit the outside retaining wall and came back down onto the track, gathering up 10 cars in the aftermath. McMurray, with the help of his spotter, avoided a number of spinning race cars and debris scattered all over the track. After the dust settled, McMurray found himself in the 11th position.
After the final restart of the race on lap 397, McMurray was able to work his way around the No. 20 race car, and was able to pass two additional cars before the checkered flag was flown on lap 400. McMurray improved 22 positions from the start of the race to the finish.
“I’m really proud of how hard all the guys on this No. 26 IRWIN Industrial Tools team worked this afternoon,” said McMurray after climbing from his Ford Fusion after the race. “The car started out great and then towards the middle of the race, it was everything I could do to stay on the lead lap and keep the car out of the wall. We threw a lot of things at this car and in the end, we were the ones who missed all those wrecks and were able to finish in the top 10. Needless to say, it was a long day, but we hung in there and came out with a pretty good finish.”
Lost in all of the hub bub about the bout between Juan Montoya and Kevin Harvick was the fact that the mistake made by by Martin Truex Jr. when he bumped Montoya cost Jamie McMurray a chance at a good finish at Watkins Glen as well.
From: JaimieMcMurray.com
Jamie McMurray entered Sunday's race as a pre-race favorite to win – and for good reason; McMurray posted top-four speeds in each practice leading into the race. McMurray and the No. 26 team took a fuel gamble early in the race that looked as if it would play out in their favor as the race wore on. The strategy was working for the No. 26 team and by lap 66, Jamie McMurray had moved into the 10th position. However, following a caution on 68, McMurray restarted in the eighth position.
As the field entered turn one, a wreck occurred ahead of the No. 26 car. McMurray was caught between Juan Pablo Montoya and Kevin Harvick. McMurray turned hard to the right but was unable to avoid the spinning No. 29 car and was clipped hard in the left rear end. The damage was severe and forced McMurray to pull his car into the garage to repair the battered No. 26 machine. After returning to the track in the 37th position, McMurray was able to gain three additional positions before finishing 34th in Sunday's race.
"It just seems that no matter what this Crown Royal team does, we can't seem to buy a break," said McMurray following the race. "It's really hard to believe that we haven't finished better than we have over the last four weeks. I thought we were going to pull out a top-10, maybe a top-5, but again we were caught in a wreck. There was nothing I could do today, and I thought we had made it all the way through, but we were caught in the left side. I really enjoyed racing here today and was really hoping for a better finish. We will have to look forward to next week at Michigan and the week after that in Bristol."
The No. 26 team returns to Michigan International Speedway next weekend for the 3M Performance 400. In their last outing at the two-mile speedway, the Crown Royal team posted a top-10 finish.
Jamie McMurray and the No. 26 Crown Royal team entered this weekend looking to improve their position in the “Race to the Chase.” However, as McMurray entered turn one on lap 44 the car was pinched too low on the speedway, sending it careening into the outside retaining wall. The damage sent to the No. 26 machine to the garage for extensive service. After repairs to the Ford Fusion, the Crown Royal team returned to the speedway, salvaging a 33rd-place finish.
Two laps after a green flag restart, McMurray entered turn one with both the No. 17 and No. 48 above him on the high line. As the three cars made their way through the middle of the corner, McMurray lost the handling of his car, sending the tail end of his No. 26 machine into the outside retaining wall. The car sustained extensive damage, forcing the No. 26 team to head to the garage for service.
“It’s a shame we lost it over there in turn one because our Crown Royal Ford Fusion was really strong this weekend,” said McMurray following the race. “It’s tough to know that we could have gained so many points with some of the guys ahead of us having bad days as well. Hopefully this is it for us and we can go on to places like Pocono, Watkins Glen, Michigan and have really good runs.”
Nextel weekend the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series returns to Pocono Raceway. The previous Pocono race was rain shortened – this weekend the team hopes for better weather and a better run. In McMurray’s last visit to the 2.5-mile tri-oval, he finished the race in the 29th position. The race begins at 3:00 p.m. Eastern with television coverage on ESPN and radio broadcasts through MRN.
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