DARLINGTON, S.C. – After spending time during the past couple of weeks testing its Caterpillar Toyotas extensively, the Cat Racing team was optimistic about its chances of success at Darlington Raceway. After qualifying in the 13th spot for the Dodge Challenger 500, Dave Blaney drove his Bill Davis Racing entry to a season-high ninth-place finish.
The Caterpillar Racing team was forced to qualify for the race on time because it sat outside the top 35 in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Owners’ points. NASCAR opened the track a day early for Sprint Cup teams to let them get acclimated to the new racing surface at the legendary track. After several practice sessions in which Blaney posted fast times, he was the 38th of 45 competitors to take to the oval for qualifying Friday evening. His speed of 177.307 mph around the 1.366-mile oval was more than enough to place the team solidly in the field. Blaney was set to line up for Saturday night’s event in the 13th position, the fastest of the “go or go home” cars.
The green flag waved for the start of the event, and Blaney immediately began to make his way to the front of the field. Blaney communicated to crew chief Tommy Baldwin that the car was good, but its handling was tight driving off of turn four. The first pit stop of the day came under green flag conditions on lap 59. The Cat crew filled the gas tank with fuel and tire specialist Steve Aspinwall made air pressure adjustments to the fresh Goodyear tires the team bolted on the car. After a full cycle of pit stops was complete, Blaney held the 11th spot on lap 75.
The Cat car remained on the tight side, but that didn’t stop Blaney from picking off his competitors one by one. By lap 128 of the 367-lap event, the Cat team had broken into the top 10. Baldwin continued to make minor adjustments to the Camry, and Blaney never fell out of the top 10. He ran as high as third by lap 234 before falling back a bit because of the tight condition.
With 100 laps to go in the event, Blaney let the team know the car was better than it had been, and Baldwin communicated to his veteran driver that the No. 22 entry was the best car on the track. Blaney held the sixth spot after the final pit stop of the day and was one of only 19 cars remaining on the lead lap. With 30 laps to go, Blaney reported to the crew that the car had become extremely tight. Because of that and the need to conserve fuel, the Cat Camry was passed by several cars in the closing laps, but remained in the top 10, taking the checkered flag in the ninth position. Saturday night’s effort was the best of the season, and the team’s effort resulted in a move into the top 35 in owners’ points. The Caterpillar Racing team now stands in 35th position in the point standings, only 54 points outside of the 30th place.
The Caterpillar Racing team will stick close to home next weekend and will take part in the Sprint Showdown Saturday night at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. Qualifying for the event is scheduled for Friday, May 16 .
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