Monday, August 25, 2008

Brumos Racing headed west to Sonoma’s Infineon Raceway for the Armed Forces 250 focused on one clear mission. Foremost in everyone’s mind was the goal of getting to Victory Lane with a long overdue Brumos win.  Flying out just ahead of Tropical Storm Fay, our Florida based group faced mounting concerns, traveling with an eye on the weather back home. Despite those distractions, our crew maintained their focus and delivered another strong performance, as both of our cars added to their string of top ten finishes. 

The DP-only race was held under sunny California skies and ran almost entirely under green flag conditions, with only one full course caution in the event.  Qualifying driver David Donohue placed our #58 car second on the starting grid before delivering his usual strong performance, maintaining a top position among the frontrunners before handing the car off to Darren Law.  On restart, following the sole caution period, Law was bumped off track by the #01 car, resulting in a penalty to the Ganassi entry that effectively took them out of contention.  In the closing laps, a heated contest developed between the #76 Krohn car and both Brumos cars. An attempt by the #76 to pass #58 caused Law to spin and stall.  Law was able to get back on track, but not before losing his 4th place position and his spot on the lead lap.  He had little chance to make up the lost ground before taking the checkered flag in 9th place.  It marked the first time in the last eight races that #58 finished out of the top five.  As Law summed it up, “We had a good car, but maybe not a winning car this time.  It looked like we would to finish in the top five, but when it spun, that really took us back.  So, we had one bad one out of the last eight races, but we’ll put it behind us and just go on to New Jersey and get ready for our next run.”

The #59 car continued to earn both attention and respect as their strong run put them in the spotlight. They delivered a 4th place finish for the third time this season, marking seven top ten finishes in the last eight races.  After starting from 13th place, J.C. France turned in another strong performance, handing the car over cleanly to Joao Barbosa.  Barbosa set to work immediately to make up ground, making his way steadily through the pack.  He had settled into 6th place in the closing laps in a three-way contest shared with the #76 and our #58 car.  When #58 spun, it enabled Barbosa to move into the 4th place spot Law had held, a position he maintained to the finish.  After the race, he said “When the #58 car had the problem, I was able to gain two positions; but sometimes, that’s racing.  It was bad for them, but in the end it was a good result for Brumos.  The crew did a great job, and J.C. had a terrific first stint.  I was able to take advantage of the yellow to make up some time and get back up front.  We were really close to a podium finish, so I’m really pleased for the #59 crew and the entire Brumos team.”

In fact, Brumos was represented on the podium, as J. C. France was awarded the Trueman-Akin Medal for the best finish of all the participants in that Sportsman Award category.  When asked for a comment about this season’s heated competition within that category, France had praise for his #59 co-driver, saying, “The competition may be fierce, but I have the best co-driver out there, so it’s a done deal as far as I’m concerned. In fact, I’d say Barbosa deserves a medal of his own!” The #59’s performance also earned Speed TV’s “Improve Your Position” award for the third time this season.

Following the Infineon race, Team Point Standings show our #58 holding on to their third place position.  Our #59 drivers remained in fourth place, but now have moved to within eight points of their teammates.  J. C. France’s 4th place finish also strengthened his hold on first place in the Trueman-Akin standings. The hard work and consistent efforts of the entire Brumos team have produced results and earned respect throughout the paddock.  As we travel on to New Jersey for our final sprint race of the 2008 season, we do so with plans to be the first to reach Victory Lane at Thunderbolt Raceway’s brand new facility.

Posted on 08/25 at 11:02 AM

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