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Homestead: Red Bull NASCAR Sprint Cup Race Recap
Who: Scott Speed (82 Red Bull Toyota), Brian Vickers (83 Red Bull Toyota)
What: Homestead 400 (Sprint Cup)
When: Sunday, Nov. 22, 2009
Where: Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead, Fla.
Results: Scott Speed (start 2, finish 27); Brian Vickers (start 34, finish 20)
+ SOUTH FLORIDA PUTS A STAMP ON IT ALL
The Homestead 400 put an end to "the grind" for two months. One of Red Bull Racing Team’s drivers closed out his first berth in the Chase and the other finally got to get rid of that yellow stripe on his rear bumper.
No. 83 driver Brian Vickers finished 20th in Sunday’s season finale at Homestead- Miami Speedway. His teammate, rookie Scott Speed in the No. 82, came home in 27th after starting second for the second consecutive race at the 1.5-mile track. "Getting in our first Chase was pretty exciting," said Vickers, who rode a string of nine finishes of 12th or better to qualify for NASCAR’s postseason. Included in that stretch was Red Bull Racing Team’s first victory in August at Michigan.
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"We struggled a lot in the Chase, but I feel like we learned a lot from it and we’ll be able to take it into next year and contend for the championship."
Vickers started 34th and used adjustments and pit strategy to work his way into the top 10 before the halfway point. But he never could keep the always-critical track position, as an air-pressure adjustment here and a turn on the track bar there only helped a little. BV restarted 15th with 48 laps go and had a hard time keeping that status. He slipped to 20th at the checkered flag.
"Tonight, we never were that great," Vickers said. "We were really lacking track position and it seemed like every time we were in position to get good track position or when we got some was when our car was at our worst. Every time we would lose (track position) was when our car would be at its best. It was just a struggle all night — we weren’t horrible, but we weren’t that great either."
Despite the issues in the Chase, it was a breakthrough season for Vickers, the No. 83 bunch and Red Bull Racing Team. Along with the victory at Michigan, Vickers posted six poles, four top fives and 13 top 10s. He finished a career best 12th in points.
Speed began the Miami weekend with a ninth-place finish in Saturday’s Nationwide Series race, driving Michael Waltrip Racing’s No. 99 Red Bull Toyota.
In a ride built for the 26-year-old former open-wheel driver to gain experience, Speed finished in the top 10 in eight of 13 races, including a pole in his debut race at Las Vegas in February.
A day later and in the final race of his rookie Sprint Cup season, Speed started alongside pole-sitter and eventual series champion Jimmie Johnson. It was the second time Speed had started on the front row at Homestead.
As 400 miles ticked away and day turned to night, Speed once claimed the handling of his No. 82 was like "driving a dirt car off the corners." He settled into the 20s in the middle stages of the race and stayed there, finishing 27th. Speed’s first full season at the Sprint Cup level ended with an average start of 23.7 and average finish of 29.0. His best showing was a fifth-place run in the spring race at Talladega.
+ UP NEXT
Daytona 500, Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010, Daytona International Speedway
PaddockTalk Perspective
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