CUP: McDowell Gives #98 First Cup Series Last-Place Run At Martinsville Since 1990

SOURCE: motorsport.com

Michael McDowell picked up the 21st last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s STP Gas Booster 500 at the Martinsville Speedway when his unsponsored #98 Phil Parsons Racing Ford fell out with brake problems after he completed 26 of the race’s 500 laps.

The finish was McDowell’s second of 2013 and his first since Las Vegas, three races ago.  He is now tied with Mike Bliss for the most last-place runs this season and improves to sole possession of 4th in the all-time Cup Series rankings, breaking a tie with former teammate Dave Blaney.

McDowell qualified 27th for Sunday’s race at a speed of 97.177 mph.  The lap was more than enough to bump 39th-fastest Mike Bliss from the field, preventing Bliss from going for his third consecutive last-place finish.

In the race itself, Scott Riggs and the #44 No Label Watches Ford fell to 43rd, followed by Danica Patrick, who spun on Lap 16 to bring out the first caution of the day.  Patrick, who’d been sent to the back due to an engine change in practice, rallied a second time to finish 12th, her best run since Daytona.  McDowell, however, pulled out ten laps after the caution, followed 21 laps later by Riggs, who also finished next-to-last in the Truck Series race the previous day.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was McDowell’s first last-place finish in a Cup race at Martinsville since 2010, when his #55 PRISM Motorsports Toyota fell out with brake problems after 24 laps of the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500.
*This was the first last-place finish for the #98 in a Cup race at Martinsville since 1990, when Rick Mast’s #98 IGA Chevrolet was involved in a single-car crash after 36 laps of the Goody’s 500.
*This was the fourth straight year where the last-place finisher of this event fell out due to brake trouble.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #98-Michael McDowell / 26 laps / brakes
42) #44-Scott Riggs / 47 laps / brakes
41) #95-Scott Speed / 64 laps / rear gear
40) #56-Martin Truex, Jr. / 385 laps / running
39) #93-Travis Kvapil / 436 laps / running / led 1 lap

LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Mike Bliss, Michael McDowell (2)
2nd) Joe Nemechek, Scott Riggs (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #19-Humphrey-Smith Motorsports, #98-Phil Parsons Racing (2)
2nd) #44-Xxxtreme Motorsports, #87-NEMCO Motorsports (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Ford, Toyota (3)

I am also pleased to announce that a second LASTCAR Book is already in production and should be available sometime this summer.  This second book will contain a year-by-year last-place championship review for both the Nationwide and Truck Series.

TRUCKS: Cobb’s RAM Trails Truck Field at Martinsville

SOURCE: The Malay Mail

Jennifer Jo Cobb picked up the 4th last-place finish of her NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Saturday’s Kroger 250 at the Martinsville Speedway when her #10 Driven2Honor.org RAM fell out with clutch problems after she completed 22 of the race’s 250 laps.

The finish was Cobb’s first of 2013 and her first in the series since last summer at Pocono, thirteen races ago.  Part-time teammate Blake Koch scored her team’s most recent last-place finish while driving the #0 Ford in the finale at Homestead last fall.

Cobb qualified 35th in the 36-truck field.  She failed to complete a qualifying lap, but was locked-in on Owner Points along with Robert Bruce and Norm Benning.  All three were slower than Jonathan Davenport and Clay Greenfield, who didn’t make the field for Saturday’s race.

Cobb pulled behind the wall during the opening green-flag run, followed fourteen laps later by Daytona last-placer Scott Riggs.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was the first last-place finish for a RAM in a Truck Series race at Martinsville since 2006, when Damon Lusk’s #25 Woodard Racing Dodge was involved in a two-truck crash after 63 laps of the Kroger 200.
*This was the first last-place finish for both Cobb and the #10 in a Truck Series race at Martinsville.
*This was the second-straight race at Martinsville where the last-place finisher fell out with clutch problems.  Last fall in the Kroger 200, Chris Fontaine’s Stingray Chevrolet / Glenden Enterprises Chevrolet had the same problem after five laps of the Kroger 200.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
36) #10-Jennier Jo Cobb / 22 laps / clutch
35) #92-Scott Riggs / 36 laps / ignition
34) #99-Bryan Silas / 109 laps / drive shaft
33) 57-Norm Benning / 135 laps / rear gear
32) #7-John Wes Townley / 205 laps / crash

LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Jennifer Jo Cobb, Scott Riggs (1)

LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #10-Jennifer Jo Cobb, #92-Ricky Benton (1)

LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Chevrolet, RAM (1)

CUP: Mike Bliss Scores Toyota’s 100th Cup Series Last-Place Finish

SOURCE: Getty Images

Mike Bliss picked up the 11th last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at the Auto Club Speedway of Southern California when his #19 G-Oil Toyota fell out with a broken fuel pump after he completed 44 of the race’s 200 laps.

The finish was Bliss’ second of the 2013 season and his second in a row.  He is the first repeat last-place finisher this Sprint Cup season.  It is also Toyota’s 100th last-place finish in the series since its debut in 2007.  Toyota’s first Cup Series last-place finish was scored on May 13, 2007 by Brian Vickers, whose #83 Red Bull Toyota fell out with crash damage after 122 laps of the Dodge Avenger 500 at Darlington.

Only 43 cars showed up to qualify for Sunday’s race, so Bliss locked himself into the field with a lap of 178.355 mph, good enough for the 41st spot.  Absent this week was Scott Speed and the Leavine Family Racing Team, following three finishes of 40th or worse since the Daytona 500.  Sunday would see the first points race appearance of Bliss’ G-Oil sponsored #19 Toyota since it missed the field for the 500 last month.

In the early stages of the race, Bliss’ car was easily confused with the black-and-white Interstate Batteries Toyota of race leader Kyle Busch.  While Busch led, Bliss exchanged the 43rd spot with Joe Nemechek and, later, Scott Riggs.  Riggs made Sunday’s field as a result of Speed’s withdrawal, allowing the #44 Xxxtreme Motorsports team to bounce back from their DNQ at Bristol.  However, the second caution put young Nationwide regular Timmy Hill and his #32 OXY Water Ford back to the 43rd spot.

On Lap 37, Hill, making his season debut and his sixth career start, lost an oil line in turns one and two, causing several front runners to smack the outside wall.  Hill spent more than seventy laps behind the wall for repairs while Bliss, Riggs, and defending LASTCAR Cup Champion Michael McDowell pulled out of the race.  After Hill returned to the track near the halfway point, Bliss slipped to 43rd.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was Bliss’ second last-place finish at Fontana and his first since 2009, when his #09 Miccosukee Resorts & Gaming Dodge fell out with engine trouble after 11 laps of the Pepsi 500.
*This was the first last-place finish by a Cup driver due to fuel pump issues since 2009, when David Gilliland’s unsponsored #71 TRG Motorsports Chevrolet fell out after 27 laps of the Southern 500 at Darlington.
*This was the first last-place finish for the #19 in a Cup race at Fontana.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #19-Mike Bliss / 44 laps / fuel pump
42) #98-Michael McDowell / 60 laps / vibration
41) #44-Scott Riggs / 66 laps / vibration
40) #35-Josh Wise / 103 laps / overheating
39) #32-Timmy Hill / 108 laps / rear gear

LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Mike Bliss (2)
2nd) Michael McDowell, Joe Nemechek, Scott Riggs (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #19-Humphrey-Smith Motorsports (2)
2nd) #44-Xxxtreme Motorsports, #87-NEMCO Motorsports, #98-Phil Parsons Racing (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Toyota (3)
2nd) Ford (2)

N’WIDE: Joey Gase’s Tough Season Continues With Early Fontana Exit

SOURCE: Rubbin's Racin'

Joey Gase picked up the 2nd last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s Royal Purple 300 at the Auto Club Speedway of Southern California when his unsponsored #52 Jimmy Means Racing Toyota fell out with engine problems after he completed four of the race’s 150 laps.

The finish was Gase’s first of the 2013 season and his first in a Nationwide Series race since last fall at Atlanta, fourteen races ago.

Gase and the Jimmy Means team have had more than their share of adversity this season. After failing to qualify at Daytona, Gase scored back-to-back DNFs at Phoenix and Las Vegas, finishing 30th and 33rd.  The following week, the team’s short-course car was destroyed in a freak accident at Bristol when he lost control and was struck by the #5 Chevrolet of Brad Sweet.  Without a backup car, Means withdrew Gase from the Bristol race and prepared for Fontana.

At Fontana, Gase drove what appeared to be the same #52 Toyota that missed the field for the Daytona race, though with many of its decals removed.  This time, Gase made the field, bumping Tony Raines and Chase Miller from the field with a lap of 169.839 mph, good enough for 32nd in the 40-car field.

Gase’s car was the first out of the race, and for the second-straight week, two cars from The Motorsports Group quickly followed to finish 38th and 39th.  Defending LASTCAR Nationwide Series Champion Jeff Green finished 37th while last week’s Bristol last-placer Michael McDowell rounded out the Bottom Five.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was the first time the last-place finisher of a Nationwide race at Fontana fell out due to engine trouble since 2007, when Johnny Borneman III’s #44 Super Series Chevrolet fell out two laps into the Camping World 300.
*This was the first last-place finish for both Gase and the #52 in a Nationwide Series race at Fontana.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
40) #52-Joey Gase / 4 laps / engine
39) #47-Scott Riggs / 5 laps / rear gear
38) #42-J.J. Yeley / 7 laps / vibration
37) #10-Jeff Green / 18 laps / vibration
36) #27-Michael McDowell / 19 laps / handling

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Joey Gase, Jeff Green, Johanna Long, Eric McClure, Michael McDowell (1)

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #10-TriStar Motorsports, #14-TriStar Motorsports, #27-SR2 Motorsports, #52-Jimmy Means Racing, #70-ML Motorsports (1)

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Toyota (4)
2nd) Chevrolet (1)

CUP: Bliss Scores Second-Straight Bristol Last-Place Finish

SOURCE: SPEED / Rubbin's Racin'

Mike Bliss picked up the 10th last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s Food City 500 at the Bristol Motor Speedway when his #19 Plinker Tactical Toyota fell out with engine problems after completing three of the race’s 500 laps.

The finish was Bliss’ first of the 2013 season and his first in a Cup Series race since last fall’s finale at Homestead, four races ago.

Bliss was making just his second start of 2013.  At Daytona, a slow qualifying lap and a loose window net during his Budweiser Duel kept his G-Oil Toyota out of the Daytona 500 and a rained-out qualifying session at Las Vegas resulted in his second DNQ.  Bliss made the show at Phoenix, where only 43 cars showed up to compete, but he fell out after 34 laps with brake problems and finished 42nd.

At Bristol, Bliss showed up with a flat black Toyota and secured the 36th starting spot.  Bliss’ lap of 125.708 mph knocked out Scott Riggs, the Phoenix last-placer, in the #44 No Label Watches Ford.

In Sunday’s race, Bliss pulled behind the wall just seven laps before Tony Stewart cut a tire and crashed in turn one.  Stewart returned to the track several laps down, but Bliss did not.

Michael McDowell came one spot shy of becoming the second-straight driver to sweep both Bristol last-place finishes in the same weekend, joining Josh Wise in 2012.  After spinning to avoid Stewart, McDowell pulled his #98 out with crash damage as the listed cause of his 42nd-place finish.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was the second-consecutive last-place finish at Bristol for both Bliss and the #19 Humphrey-Smith Motorsports Toyota.  Last August, Bliss fell out after six laps of the Irwin Tools Night Race due to power steering issues.  It is, however, the first last-place finish for the #19 in the spring Cup race at Bristol since March 14, 1976, when Henley Gray’s Belden Asphalt Chevrolet fell out with brake failure after 40 laps of the Southeastern 400.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #19-Mike Bliss / 3 laps / engine
42) #98-Michael McDowell / 26 laps / crash
41) #47-Bobby Labonte / 159 laps / engine
40) #95-Scott Speed / 184 laps / electrical
39) #83-David Reutimann / 184 laps / engine

LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Mike Bliss, Michael McDowell, Joe Nemechek, Scott Riggs (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #19-Humphrey-Smith Motorsports, #44-Xxxtreme Motorsports, #87-NEMCO Motorsports, #98-Phil Parsons Racing (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Ford, Toyota (2)