Gatorade Duals - 2/11/10
With eight laps to go, Michael Waltrip dropped out of the first Gatorade Dual race. His #51 Napa Camry was incredibly tight, and he lost control of the car and spun. One of the drivers outside of the top 35 who made the Daytona 500 on time will have to race their way in for Mikey to race on Sunday.
Mikey was in the first dual race. He rolled off 10th. The call to start engines came at 2:08pm ET.
Crew chief Bobby Kennedy asked Mikey if he could hear him when the #51 was on the backstretch.
"I'm probably about as far away from you as I can be right now," Mikey replied.
Bobby said something about the radio sounding good.
"Yeah, surprisingly well."
"10-4."
"Yeah, everyone's radio sounds great."
Mikey said something about twenty five years that had to do with the radios. He said something about hearing all the way to the moon but not on the backstretch.
Ty wanted to talk with Jerry about using someone else's radio next week. Brother Darrell addressed Mikey from the TV booth next, asking if little brother Michael Curtis could hear him.
"Loud and clear, DW," Mikey replied. "How's it going up there in the TV booth? Coming to you live from the Napa Toyota."
DW recognised that Mikey has won a couple Daytona 500s but now had to run sixty "pretty important laps" to get into this year's show. He asked his brother what he thought his chances were.
"Yeah, I'm pretty confident, Darrell. The car worked real well. Bobby Kennedy, all the MWR cars brought me a car here that not only can I transfer with but I can contend. I've won a couple of these things on Thursdays."
DW told Mikey good luck and reminded him that he is one of the best restrictor plate racers and never to forget that.
"I won't, and I'm going to remind some people of that here in a minute."
"All right, bud. It's going to be one to go when you get to the line. One to go."
Bobby told Ty when to pick up the #51 on pit road.
"10-4," Ty replied.
"Gotcha," Mikey added.
"48's falling back there," Bobby warned.
"All right. What's our plan, the last thirty something?"
Bobby said 38 and a half was their max when they'd have to go to pit road.
"All right, buddy, be ready. Pace car's off. Ready? Green green green. Everybody's rolling."
Mark Martin led the field to the green flag at 2:20pm ET from the outside line.
"Everybody's rolling, two by two," Ty noted. "24's still down there. You've got a lot of help up top. 43's coming with you. You've got one all the way at the bottom, all the way at the bottom, inside. Still right to your door. Top line's going to have a big run coming up to your bumper, 23. Peaking back inside, inside. Both sides, both sides. The 11's going to try to be in the middle with you. 11 in the middle with you. Both sides. Still both sides. Still both sides. You've got the 11 and the 24 in the middle. Still both sides, both sides."
On lap 3, Mikey was still stuck in the middle and was wobbling with Denny Hamlin pushing him. The #51 was 6th.
"Still both sides. Still there inside inside. Still both sides, both sides. Still there both sides, still there both sides. Clear low clear low. The 11 is not clear yet. You're clear. Still clear, still clear. Top side started moving. Coming outside now, coming outside. Still outside on your quarter, the 31. Still outside, still got a push. 11 moved to the high side. Clear there if you want it. You've got 29 help on the bottom. Outside now outside."
Mikey was 8th on lap 6, working the high line. Mark Martin continued to lead; Ryan Newman had led two laps first.
"Still outside now, two by two."
Jeff Fuller went to the garage.
"Still outside all the way at the top. 29 24 coming to your bumper. Nice run, 99 still up top, still there. Still out there on your quarter, two by two."
Mikey was 10th on lap 7.
"Still outside, still outside. A push coming from the 29. Still got one all the way to the top, 37. You're clear now. Whatever you want. Clear three back. Still clear two back to the high side to the 48. 48 and the 1, one back."
Mikey was 11th on lap 8.
"Still clear by one. 48's looking low. You're still clear. You're still clear. You've got the 1 coming to your bumper. Still there, still there. Clear now if you want it. Single file. You've got the 1 and 48 in your mirror. You're all clear. Two back to the 1. 1's sneaking on the inside of the 21 if you don't make a move here. You've got the 1 and 48 pushing. Huge push here. 39's still outside on your corner. Clear if you need it clear if you need it clear if you need it. There you go. Single file behind you. 39's looking inside inside inside. Five behind the 1 car, back to the 28. You've got six or seven behind you. Losing the pack."
"Real pushy, real loose. Not a good balance at all," Mikey said on lap 13.
"Okay, you're still clear still clear still clear. Going to have a run outside outside. Quick clear behind him back to the 33, two back. 33's looking high. He's out there. He's outside he's outside. You've got the 6 up there with him, Michael. Inside, inside. 6 is still there, still there. You're clear the 6 half back, one back. You see that 6 on the bottom."
Mikey was 14th on lap 15.
"I'll let you know the next transfer car is at the line now. Still clear, still clear. 33 by himself. Clear of him. You've still got the 6 in your mirror."
"Okay, we're going to get your some air pressure adjustments, get you some grip all the way around," Bobby told his driver.
"It's just, it's both. It's mainly the front, but it's just a little bit loose both ends, and it's pushing on both ends."
"10-4."
"You're still clear two back to the 6, still clear," Ty said. "Inside inside. He's there, inside. Clear low, clear low. You've got one sneaking up on the outside, the 33."
Mikey was 15th on lap 19.
"All right, get that temp reading when you get a chance," Bobby requested.
"200, 210. 40," Mikey replied.
"10-4." After a minute, Bobby said, "All right, it's lap 20, lap 20. Let me know if you hear anything about pit stops, Ty."
"10-4. Good job, man. You're doing a nice job hanging on here," Ty praised.
"We don't got a good set up here. There's no grip. It feels like the front end is off the ground today. It doesn't feel like it did yesterday," Mikey reported after saying something about handling.
"10-4," Bobby replied.
"Drifts the nose on entry really bad," Mikey added.
"Just an update. The next transfer car we're worried about is the 21, and he's at the line now."
The first caution was on lap 25 when Jeff Burton lost a right front tire.
"Right in front of you, right in front of you. Stay down stay down, keep coming. Caution's out now, caution's out."
"It's just really, we messed our car up from yesterday. And don't say you did nothing to it. I know you didn't. Yesterday, it was down on the ground, and it was digging. And now it feels like it's a foot off the ground. It floats the nose. It's as bad up in the air as I can explain."
"All right, 10-4," Bobby replied.
"The leader has not caught the pace car yet, so we're not going to be pitting this time."
"Okay, 10-4."
Ty warned Mikey about debris in Turn 4.
"Yeah, we've got packer. We can pull them in the right front." He said they might give up some spots on the track but not too many.
"I don't know. I don't know what you did to it, so I don't know how it got all up the air. You might pull a packer, and it might not work. It might not fix it. I don't know. I don't know. I'm just telling you what it's doing, just like I did yesterday." Mikey said he knew Bobby would just say he didn't do anything. "And I know I'm not real bright, but I can definitely feel when the splitter's hitting the road."
"All right, guys, get nice and loose here," Ty said.
Bobby called for four tires and pulled packers on each side.
"All right, pit road is still going to be closed," Ty warned. "All right, buddy, it's going to be open this time, open this time. 4600."
"Five away."
"Pull a tearoff if you can."
Bobby confirmed this. "Okay, it should be straight in, straight out."
"How far is the 13 back there, Ty?"
Ty said five spots behind them on the track.
"Wheels straight, put on the brakes. Shift when the left side drops. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Straight in, straight in. Get the grill, guys. Wheels straight, put on the brakes. "All right, go go go go go. 4600, all the way all the way."
"Easy now. 4600, 4600. I sure don't think we lost much there, Bobby."
Bobby told Mikey to keep his foot on the brake when they're working.
"It's my fault. I thought when they were done in the back, I didn't have to."
"All right, p15, you're going to be on the bottom behind the 78."
"Count 'em down for me."
"Yes sir. You'll be completing lap 28 here," Ty replied. "Yeah, you and Bill are two transfer guys now, but now we have a transfer guy on our bumper, but that's cool. All right, bud. Coming to the green, about halfway through here."
Martin led the lap 30 restart on the inside. Mikey was 15th.
"All right, bud. Be ready. Pace car's off. Ready? Green green green. Everybody's rolling, everybody's rolling. You're all clear. The 13 fell off. All clear. Still down there. Still there. Clear the 78. Still clear. 43 stayed up top. Still outside outside. Still two by two. The top side has four guys in it. You've got the 78 in your mirror. 21's still outside on your corner. Still there, and he's got a big push. Still there outside outside outside. Still outside outside. Outside outside. They have help. 13's up there with him. Clear there clear there."
By lap 32, Kyle Busch had taken the lead, but then Greg Biffle took it from him.
"Still clear three back. Still clear three back. 33's by himself on the bottom,c oming back to you. Still clear if you need it, clear if you need it. Keep coming keep coming keep coming. Back it off back it down."
The second caution was on lap 33. Someone spun out Terry Cook's #46.
"Whoa whoa whoa, okay. The pace car just about ran into the field."
"That was stupid," Mikey said. He was 15th.
"That was ridiculous. Pit road will be open. Stay out, Bobby?"
"Yeah, 10-4." Bobby asked if taking out packer had helped.
"Yeah, it's definitely back to hitting the ground, which makes it challenging for a little bit, but I think it will pay off."
"10-4."
Ty said a transfer car had spun, and Max Papis had damage too.
"Yeah, he probably went somewhere he shouldn't have. But heck, maybe it will work out for him," Mikey said. He asked if the other team cars had a different set-up or did something different on the front end with load sharing.
"47 56 are the same, mainly left front. Okay, Billy said they shared. The 00 will be different then than the three."
Mikey said he wasn't good enough like this.
Bobby said the 47 and 56 were up more. "They're in the 700 pound range, and we're in the 500, 550."
"Okay, maybe springs and then... am I 13th, Ty?"
Ty said something that sounded staticky. "All right, bud, you're going to be 25 to go when you get the green, 25. You're the first transfer position."
Greg Biffle led the restart on lap 36 with Mikey in 13th.
"Okay, bud, pace car's off. Ready? Green green green. Everybody's rollilng. Clear if you want it, clear if you want it. Still clear if you want it. Still clear three back, whatever you need, bud. Two back, 87's going to have a run at the top side. Still two back. Still one back. Single file. 87's there with you. 34 has a run on the inside of the 87. Still outside outside, outside. Two by two. Still two by two, two by two. Got you covered on the outside. Still outside, the 11 choosing the middle. 34 right there with you now, two by two. No help on the bottom, man. Still outside. Still outside. All the help's up top. Clear there clear there, clear clear. Still outside."
Mikey was 11th on lap 39. Jeff Gordon was in the lead.
"Still outside, two by two. Still outside. Still outside outside, a lot of help up top. 32's going to be the next one outside. 1's in the middle here, making it three wide here. Still three wide. Clear behind the 1 in the middle, if you need it. 7's all the way at the top. All the help's up top right now, still outside. Still outside. Clear there for a second. 31's on your bumper. Still clear, still clear. Still outside outside. Nobody with you. Help's coming, help's coming. You're clear there, clear there. 21 to go, 21."
Biffle led lap 41.
"13's going to be clear, clear. Still outside. Still clear, whatever you need. Any lane. Clear on the bottom if you want it. Still outside outside. Clear behind him if you want it. That's Bodine there. Clear one back. Still out there. Still there. Clear up behind him if you need it, clear up. 18 to go."
Mikey was 17th on lap 43 and was not in a transfer spot. Todd Bodine had taken the spot.
"Still up there, still there. Clear up right there, two back. 17 to go. Clear one back, clear one back. Still there, still there. Clear clear. 27's still up top. Clear of him, clear of him. All clear, all clear. All right, bud. 16 to go. Still down there. Clear the 99. You were racing the 27 for the transfer spot for a second."
Mikey was 14th on lap 45 and back in the transfer spot.
"Still three back to the 27, although he's getting a push from the 29 right now. Clear two back, but the bottom line is moving. The 99 is back there, got around the 27. You're all clear on the bottom there. All clear. 15, bud. 15 to go. Two back to the 99, and he's three in front of the 43 and 27. Clear by three, clear by three. You've got a push coming from the 99. Still outside, still there. 99's right there inside, inside. Clear three. Way to go with that 27, bud. Keep on rolling. Still outside, the 43. He's looking. He's going to be there. Outside outside. Clear behind him, clear behind him. There you go, there you go. Still down there, still there. Clear clear. Clear three back. 12 to go, 12. Still three back to that 32. The 27's trying to sneak up on him now. Still out there, still there."
On lap 50, Mikey was 15th and in a transfer spot.
"Four back to the 32. Ten to go, ten. All right, bud. You're clear. Six back to the 32, and he's picking up that 27. I'll let you know. Still six back to the 32, and he's spread out from that 27 and 37. Still outside, 24's still there."
With 8 to go, Biffle lost the lead to Kyle Busch.
"There you go. Eight to go, eight. Still outside, still there. Clear there, clear there. Still five, six back to the 32, and he backed away from the other crowd. Still outside, outside. 98's still up there. 78's trying to help. Watch yourself there. I don't know, man. He spun out off of 4."
"I see it," Bobby said.
"Yeah, it's my fault. I just got really really tight, so I just messed up. Damn, I hate that I did that. I'm sorry, guys." He said something about maybe someone would race their way in so he would make the race.
Mikey was the reason for the third caution with seven laps to go. He had wiggled, and Reagan Smith got into him. Mikey hit the inside barrier nose first.
If any of the drivers who are in the Daytona 500 on time race their way in, Mikey will make the field. He finished his dual in the garage in 25th while Jimmie Johnson won the race. Max Papis and Michael McDowell made it into the Daytona 500.
Coverage of the Daytona 500 begins Sunday at 1:00pm ET on FOX.
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© 2009 Kellyanne Lynch, in association with Cyber Speed Design. All rights reserved.
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