CUP: Brendan Gaughan’s Engine Failure Not Enough To Take #33 Team Out Of The Top 35



SOURCE: motorsport.com

Brendan Gaughan picked up the 2nd last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s rain-shortened Auto Club 500 at the Auto Club Speedway of Southern California when his #33 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet fell out with an engine failure after completing 1 of the race’s 129 laps.

The finish was Gaughan’s first of 2012 and his first in Cup since Phoenix in the fall of 2010, when he also fell out after the opening lap while driving for TRG Motorsports.

Despite resulting in owner Richard Childress’ first 43rd-place run since Jeff Burton lost his engine at Talladega in the fall of 2007, the #33 team lost five points to its competitors in the Top 35 battle and remains 35th, now just five points to the good. The team is thus locked into next week’s race at Martinsville, where Hermie Sadler will once again race at his home track.

Behind Gaughan, three Cup Series last-placers in 2012 remain outside the Top 35 - Josh Wise in the #26, Michael McDowell in the #98, and J.J. Yeley in the #49 - all within 27 points of the #33.

Joe Nemechek, still tied for 2nd in the all-time LASTCAR standings, suffered his first DNQ since Phoenix in the fall of 2010. Nemechek now looks towards making the show next Sunday at Martinsville, where he’s the race’s defending last-place finisher. His #87 currently stands 43rd in Owner Points, 40 points away from a guaranteed starting spot.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*The #33's most recent last-place finish in a Cup race was in 2001, when Joe Nemechek’s #33 Oakwood Homes Chevrolet suffered an overheating problem after 108 laps of the Food City 500 at Bristol. The number had never before finished last in a Cup race at Fontana.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #33-Brendan Gaughan / 1 lap / engine
42) #74-Reed Sorenson / 6 laps / vibration
41) #23-Scott Riggs / 17 laps / vibration
40) #19-Mike Bliss / 18 laps / transmission
39) #30-David Stremme / 36 laps / rear gear

LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Brendan Gaughan, Michael McDowell, David Ragan, Josh Wise, J.J. Yeley (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #26-Front Row Motorsports, #33-Richard Childress Racing, #34-Front Row Motorsports, #49-Robinson-Blakeney Racing, #98-Phil Parsons Racing (1)

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

N’WIDE: Jeff Green Ties Nemechek, Shepherd For Second In The All-Time LASTCAR Standings

SOURCE: NASCAR Media

Jeff Green picked up the 29th 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 #10 TriStar Motorsports Toyota fell out with a vibration after 2 of the race’s 150 laps.

The finish was Green’s third of 2011 and his first since Phoenix, three races ago. With it, Green is now tied with both Joe Nemechek and Morgan Shepherd for the second-most last-place finishes in NASCAR history at 34 apiece. All three now stand one finish behind all-time leader Derrike Cope’s mark of 35.

Green qualified 26th at a speed of 171.306 mph, ranking him fifth among the thirteen “go-or-go-homers” who made the field due to the race’s 43-car entry list.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*Jeff Green’s most recent last-place finish in a Nationwide race at Fontana was in 2010, when Green’s TriStar-owned #36 fell out with a fuel pressure problem after 2 laps of the CampingWorld.com 300.
*The #10 had never before finished last in a Nationwide race at Fontana.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #10-Jeff Green / 2 laps / vibration
42) #72-John Jackson / 3 laps / fuel pump
41) #47-Scott Speed / 4 laps / vibration
40) #74-Mike Harmon / 5 laps / rear end
39) #42-Josh Wise / 6 laps / electrical

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Jeff Green (3)
2nd) Mike Harmon, Josh Wise (1)

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #10-TriStar Motorsports (3)
2nd) #42-The Motorsports Group, #74-Mike Harmon (1)

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Toyota (3)
2nd) Chevrolet (2)

CUP, N’WIDE: Josh Wise The First NASCAR Driver In Two Years To Finish Last Twice In One Weekend

Last weekend, Riverside, California driver Josh Wise became the first driver since Dave Blaney in 2009 to finish last in both a Cup and Nationwide Series race at the same track on the same weekend. In 2009, Blaney scored both 43rd-place runs for owner Phil Parsons, driving MSRP Motorsports’ #91 Chevrolet in the Nationwide race and PRISM Motorsports’ #66 Toyota in the Cup event.

Unlike Blaney, however, both of Wise’s finishes were the first he scored in either series.

SOURCE: NASCAR Media

On Saturday, Josh Wise picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s Ford EcoBoost 300 at the Bristol Motor Speedway when his unsponsored #42 The Motorsports Group Chevrolet fell out with electrical problems after completing 3 of the race’s 300 laps. The finish came in Wise’s 81st series start.

Wise qualified 35th at a speed of 118.877 mph, ranking him twelfth among the sixteen “go-or-go-homers” who attempted to qualify. Having qualified behind 28th-place Jeff Green, a two-time last-placer in 2012, Wise ended up with 43rd when he followed Green to the garage after three laps. All four of the first Nationwide Series last-place finishers this season have all fallen out after completing exactly three laps.

Chase Miller and Scott Speed, two of Wise’s three teammates from the Curtis Key-owned team, also exited during the first ten laps and finished 40th and 41st, respectively. Erik Darnell, in Key’s flagship #40, finished a respectable 21st.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*The last time the #42 finished 43rd in a Nationwide Series race was in 2009, when Kevin Hamlin’s Smith Iron Works Dodge qualified 10th, but suffered electrical problems and did not complete a lap of the Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 at Gateway. Car #42 had never before finished last in a Nationwide race at Bristol.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #42-Josh Wise / 3 laps / electrical
42) #10-Jeff Green / 3 laps / vibration
41) #47-Scott Speed / 6 laps / vibration
40) #46-Chase Miller / 7 laps / brakes
39) #27-J.J. Yeley / 15 laps / brakes

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Jeff Green (2)
2nd) Mike Harmon, Josh Wise (1)

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #10-TriStar Motorsports (2)
2nd) #42-The Motorsports Group, #74-Mike Harmon (1)

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

SOURCE: motorsport.com

The next day, Wise picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s Food City 500 at the Bristol Motor Speedway when his #26 Morristown Drivers Service Ford fell out with a spindle problem after completing 16 of the race’s 500 laps. The finish came in Wise’s 7th series start.

Wise qualified 37th at a speed of 122.380 mph, ranking him third among the “go-or-go-homers” behind David Stremme and Dave Blaney. This allowed Wise to make the third consecutive start of his rookie season after veteran Tony Raines drove his #26 during last month’s Daytona 500. However, as a result of his early exit, Wise has yet to finish under power in any of his three starts. His best Cup finish remains a 37th at Dover last fall, when he drove Larry Gunselman’s #37 MaxQ Motorsports Ford.

Starting next to Wise on Sunday was Reed Sorenson, who was tabbed as a late replacement for Stacy Compton in Compton’s Turn One Motorsports team. Sorenson qualified next to Wise in 38th, securing the team its first-ever start in its first attempt. However, Sorenson also left the race early, but one lap after Wise.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This is the first time a NASCAR Sprint Cup last-place finisher fell out with spindle problems since June 8, 1967, when Wendell Scott’s unsponsored 1965 Ford fell out 51 laps into the East Tennessee 200 at the Smoky Mountain Raceway in Maryville, Tennessee. Scott was one of only 20 cars to race that day on the half-mile dirt track, and Richard Petty was the winner.
*The last time the #26 finished 43rd in a Cup points race was in 2008, when Jamie McMurray’s Crown Royal Ford finished under power, but 133 laps down, in the 2008 Food City 500. To date, that is McMurray’s only last-place finish in Cup Series competition.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #26-Josh Wise / 16 laps / spindle
42) #74-Reed Sorenson / 17 laps / vibration
41) #23-Scott Riggs / 26 laps / vibration
40) #87-Joe Nemechek / 57 laps / brakes
39) #99-Carl Edwards / 245 laps / running

LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Michael McDowell, David Ragan, Josh Wise, J.J. Yeley (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #26-Front Row Motorsports, #34-Front Row Motorsports, #49-Robinson-Blakeney Racing, #98-Phil Parsons Racing (1)

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

CUP: Yeley Gives Car #49 Its First Last-Place Finish In Cup Since 2003

SOURCE: NASCAR Media

J.J. Yeley picked up the 9th last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 400 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway when his #49 America Israel Racing Toyota fell out with an engine failure after completing 39 of the race’s 267 laps.

The finish was Yeley’s first of 2012 and his first since he drove Front Row Motorsports’ #55 to a 43rd at Texas, five races ago. It was also the first last-place finish in a points race for America Israel Racing, also known as Robinson-Blakeney Racing, since its inception late last offseason.

Yeley qualified 36th at a speed of 184.370 mph, ranking him third behind Trevor Bayne and Timmy Hill (making his 1st Cup Series start) among the ten “go-or-go-homers” who attempted to qualify. It was the second-consecutive start for the #49 team since an engine failure in Daytona’s Gatorade Duels left them with a last-place finish and without a starting spot in the Daytona 500. Last Sunday at Phoenix, Yeley brought the #49 home a respectable 26th, three laps down to the leaders.

In Sunday’s race, Joe Nemechek’s #87 was the first car to pull out of the race during the first 20 laps, apparently set to tie Derrike Cope for the all-time LASTCAR lead of 35 total last-place finishes. However, Nemechek returned to the track thirteen laps down, and Yeley pulled out of the race shortly before Timmy Hill crashed out of the race. Nemechek moved past both Hill and Yeley before he fell out after 44 laps.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was the first last-place finish for the #49 in a Cup Series race since 2003, when Ken Schrader’s Blair.com Dodge was involved in this horrifying single-car wreck on the eighth lap of the Pocono 500 at the Pocono Raceway. Schrader was uninjured in the accident.
*The #49 had never before finished last in a Cup race at Las Vegas.
*The 39 laps Yeley completed were the most by a Cup Series last-place finisher since Dover last May, when defending LASTCAR Cup Champion Michael McDowell completed 45 laps in his #66 HP Racing LLC Toyota.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #49-J.J. Yeley / 39 laps / engine
42) #37-Timmy Hill / 42 laps / crash
41) #87-Joe Nemechek / 44 laps / vibration
40) #26-Josh Wise / 64 laps / brakes
39) #93-Travis Kvapil / 123 laps / engine

LASTCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Michael McDowell, David Ragan, J.J. Yeley (1)

LASTCAR CUP SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #34-Front Row Motorsports, #49-Robinson-Blakeney Racing, #98-Phil Parsons Racing (1)

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

N’WIDE: Mike Harmon Ends Jeff Green’s Streak At Two

SOURCE: NASCAR Media

Mike Harmon picked up the 12th last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s Sam’s Town 300 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway when his #74 Koma Unwind Relaxation Drink Chevrolet fell out with a vibration after 3 of the race’s 200 laps.

The finish was Harmon’s first of the year and his first in a Nationwide race since last spring at Fontana, 32 races ago. Harmon is now tied for 5th in the all-time LASTCAR Nationwide Series standings and for 11th all-time.

Harmon qualified 41st in the 43-car field at an average speed of 166.420 mph. By following Scott Speed’s #47 The Motorsports Group Chevrolet to the garage after three laps, both prevented Jeff Green from scoring his third consecutive last-place finish. Green pulled out of the race one lap later, but was followed by Josh Wise, Speed’s teammate. This left Green in the 40th spot.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*Harmon’s most recent Nationwide Series last-place finish at Las Vegas was in 2003, when his Gregg Mixon-owned #44 Global Industrial Contractors Chevrolet fell out with an oil pump problem after four laps.
*The #74 had never before finished last in a Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas.
*For the first time in Nationwide Series history, the first three last-place finishers of the season completed the same number of laps. All three last-place finishers existed after three laps, and all had “vibration” as the listed cause.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #74-Mike Harmon / 3 laps / vibration
42) #47-Scott Speed / 3 laps / vibration
41) #42-Josh Wise / 4 laps / electrical
40) #10-Jeff Green / 4 laps / vibration
39) #46-Chase Miller / 6 laps / electrical

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Jeff Green (2)
2nd) Mike Harmon (1)

LASTCAR N'WIDE SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #10-TriStar Motorsports (2)
2nd) #74-Mike Harmon (1)

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