Dreyer & Reinbold Racing’s #15 team with driver Buddy Rice took home seventh place in Saturday night’s Firestone Indy 200 at the Nashville Superspeedway.
Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon gambled on fuel strategy late, and when rains came and shortened the race distance 29 laps, they stole the top two positions, keeping Rice out of the top-five for a second week in a row.
Rice kept his nose clean all night on the difficult 1.33-mile concrete oval. He managed to maintain his position hovering around the top-ten in the early parts of the race while handling an under-steering car. His crew dialed it in on the first two stops, helping him to quicken his pace and get into contention for a top-five. The crew also earned him positions in the pits on a couple of occasions. With another solid finish, Rice moved into 12th in the point standings, only 29 points behind eighth-place Ryan Briscoe.
Milka Duno tied her best qualifying effort of 2008 by earning 16th position. Her race started off well as she stayed with the lead pack and gained several spots on her first pit stop.
Things went awry on the second stop when a malfunction of the air jack failure caused the team to lose a lap while trying to compensate for the issues.
She managed to finish the race, two laps down, but her and the team can only wonder “what if” as they left the track. Though a disappointment, Duno continues to improve on the ovals and gel with the team.
QUOTES
#15 DREYER & REINBOLD RACING Honda Dallara Driver Buddy Rice
“It was another good night. The team had a lot of guests at the event, so it was a good chance for us to put on a good show in front of everybody. It’s a bummer that rain put a damper on things, but I’m glad we earned another top-ten finish. I have to thank all the sponsors and the whole crew for continuing to put in a good effort in this tough stretch of the season. Let’s move on to Mid-Ohio and look to get another solid result there.”
#23 CITGO/DREYER & REINBOLD RACING Honda Dallara Driver Milka Duno
“During the weekend at Nashville Superspeedway, we improved a lot with the car and had a good qualifying. The race was difficult. It’s a hard track and difficult to pass with only one line. We made a mistake in a first pit stop with the green flag, and I lost a lap. My thanks to the team and the mechanics that worked hard.”
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