Gatorade Duel 2011
February 17, 2011 by admin
Filed under Feature, Race Audio
Rewind: Jeff Gordon started on the pole for the Gatorade Duel and the field quickly went into two-car drafts which have become standard during Daytona Speedweeks. Gordon drafted early in front of Trevor Bayne. He was pushed to the front on two occasions by the 19-year-old rookie. The duo was broken up by a caution flag with 23 laps to go, which mandated they re-start parallel to each other. However, Bayne eased up to allow Gordon to lead their drafting pack, thus showing wisdom well beyond his years. On the final lap, Gordon got loose coming out of turn four with Bayne tucked in behind. The car brushed the wall and made contact with Bayne, thus triggering a wreck. Gordon masterfully steered around the spinning cars of Bayne and Ragan to bring the car back with minimal damage.
Road ahead: The #24 car will repair the primary car for Sunday’s race. Gordon will start on the outside of the front row along side Kurt Busch, with Jeff Burton directly behind him. Gordon’s car seemed to struggle on restarts in the Gatorade Duel as the partnership with Bayne lost spots on every restart.
JG’s comments:
WHAT HAPPENED THERE AT THE END? “I just could not get going on the restarts. I really had a blast working with Trevor Bayne. He’s a good kid. He’s a heck of a race car driver. They’ve got a fast race car. We just couldn’t get going on the restarts though. I’m not sure why we couldn’t get that momentum. So we lost a lot of spots on every restart and then once we got going, we were fast; real fast. There at the end, we lost so many spots we were just trying to make up a few. A couple of guys looked like they lost momentum and got disconnected and I had to go three-wide around them. It’s a vulnerable spot. We’ve already seen that in practice at the some other races and it turned me. And when it did, I was lucky that we didn’t have worse damage than we did. But I got in the wall. So, we’ll have to see if we can fix it. I was just thrilled with the car and thrilled with the team. I thought everything was going really, really good with the Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet. Unfortunately it didn’t end very well and we’ll just go to work and see what we have to do for the 500.”
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE RACING THAT’S GOING ON OUT THERE? “Really intense. It’s actually really fun from inside the car once you get going under green and it gets spread out a little bit and you’re just racing with four or six other guys. Those restarts are not a lot of fun. But no restart at Daytona or Talladega is a whole lot of fun. But once you get going, I think it’s pretty cool. Trying to figure out how to pass a guy and looking at your temps and trying to find a partner. There is a lot of strategy involved. You’ve got to drive the car, because it’s not easy. And we’re seeing some great finishes. I don’t know. It is kind of what it is and we’ve got to try to figure out how we’re going to get through 500 miles of it.”
ARE YOU FINE WITH IT, OR WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE THEM MAKE A CHANGE OF SOME SORT? “I don’t think there are any changes that need to be made or can be made. Am I fine with it? It’s not what I prefer. I prefer to go back and race like we did in 2005 (laughs). But you know that’s not going to happen. But I think NASCAR has done pretty much all that they can do, but maybe they’ll do more. I don’t know. I just want to go race and I think we’ve got a fast race car. We’ve just got to get hooked up with the right guys and see what we can do from there.”
HOW MUCH DAMAGE IS THERE? “I don’t know. They’ll look at it. That right-front fender has got me concerned. We’ll go from there.”
source: gordonline.com
In Car Audio
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Texas II In Car Audio
November 7, 2010 by admin
Filed under Feature, Race Audio
November 8 – - Jeff Gordon’s frustration boiled over in the late afternoon sun at Texas Motor Speedway. After battling handling issues for the balance of the day, Gordon was wrecked during a caution period by Jeff Burton in turn two on lap 191. The drivers exited their cars and had a brief melee before being separated. Gordon sustained his 3rd DNF of the season and finished 37th.
Gordon started 15th and moved to 14th by lap 10. The field was slowed by a caution flag for Joe Nemechek’s engine on lap 12. Pit stops followed with Gordon opting for two tires. He restarted 8th on lap 17 and immediately jumped to 6th. However, he dropped to 7th on lap 27 as his lap times began slowing. Jimmie Johnson passed Gordon to take a position on lap 35. He fell to 10th on lap 37 when Paul Menard and Kyle Busch went by. A debris caution on lap 43 slowed the field and allowed Gordon’s crew to make chassis adjustments on pit road. Gordon changed four tires and gained two spots in the pits. He lost those spots immediately after the restart as his handling woes continued.
Gordon dropped to 12th on lap 50 unable to advance forward. A caution for Sam Hornish’s wall contact on lap 59 slowed the field. Gordon changed tires and restarted 17th on lap 64. He moved up to 15th within three laps of the restart. Kevin Harvick sent him back to 16th on lap 71. He followed Harvick through traffic and ran 14th on lap 90. He moved back into the top-10 on lap 105 with a pass on Elliott Sadler. Gordon came to pit road for a green flag pit stop on lap 111. Following the stops, Gordon ran in 14th place. Martin Truex’s spin on lap 132 brought the field to pit road. Gordon restarted in the top-10 but dropped back a few laps after the green flag. He faded to 15th by lap 150 when the caution waved for Truex’s cut tire. Pit stops followed and Gordon restarted 18th on lap 156. Gordon masterfully held his line and avoided Kyle Busch’s spinning car one lap after the restart. He spent the next 25 laps running in 20th place.
On lap 191, Jeff Burton drilled Gordon from behind sending him into the wall. Gordon exited the car and jogged across the track to the safety vehicle. He shoved Burton with both hands and unloaded with a right hand. Burton took the blame for the incident in a TV interview, which was little consolation to Gordon. “He went wide in turn three, I got to the inside and he drove into me,” Gordon said. “Then the caution came out. We went into turn one and I guess he was frustrated and drove in my right rear and put me in the wall.” Gordon slipped to 6th in points and will be mathematically eliminated from title contention next week at Phoenix. Although that’s merely for posterity since his focus had shifted to 2011 a few weeks ago.
After the wreck, Gordon’s pit crew was called over to Johnson’s pit stall as crew chief Chad Knaus elected to replace his entire crew. Gordon’s crew pitted Johnson’s car for the remainder of the day — turning stops a full second quicker than the 48 team had previously done earlier in the event.
source: gordonline.com
Audio
Jeff Gordon Post Race Comments
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Jeff Burton Post Race Comments
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Pocono In Car Audio
June 6, 2010 by admin
Filed under Feature, Race Audio
June 7 – - The momentum that Jeff Gordon and the DuPont team had in the early spring from several near-wins has become a thing of the past as Gordon has struggled over the last three races. Gordon posted a 32nd place finish at Pocono Raceway after battling loose handling issues for the majority of the event. A late race fuel gamble backfired and Gordon fell through the field after restarting in 6th with 29 laps to go, before being collected in a last lap crash.
A heavy rainstorm delayed the start by nearly 2 hours, and Gordon took the green flag under sunny skies just after 3pm/eastern time. He started 10th and moved up to 7th by the end of lap 2. On lap 6, he moved to the inside of Dale Earnhardt Jr and took 6th at the entrance to turn one. Gordon moved into the top-5 after passing Tony Stewart on lap 10. A competition caution on lap 15 brought the field to pit road with Gordon holding the 5th spot through the stops. After the restart he took 4th from Matt Kenseth on lap 22. He held 4th through a green flag pit stop sequence on lap 50. Gordon’s car was too loose on the long green flag run and crew chief Steve Letarte opted to drop the track bar during a green flag pit stop on lap 77. On lap 84, Gordon lost two spots to Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne while battling a loose handling car. Jimmie Johnson went by on lap 85 to send Gordon back to 7th, and Jeff Gordon sent Gordon to 8th on lap 92.
The second caution waved on lap 97 for debris. Gordon came to pit road for adjustments and departed in 8th place. He moved into 7th on the restart on lap 101, but fell to 10th after AJ Allmendinger, Greg Biffle, and Kasey Kahne passed within a two lap stretch on laps 104-105. Joey Logano took the 10th spot one lap later as Gordon’s fall through the field continued. Gordon later passed Biffle to re-enter the top-10. However, he dropped out of the top-10 on lap 121 when Earnhardt Jr went by on the frontstretch. Gordon pitted under the green flag on lap 132 for adjustments and ran 13th after the cycle of pit stops. A debris caution on lap 154 brought the leaders to pit road. A slow stop sent Gordon back to 17th place for the restart on lap 158. A caution for Casey Mears’ spin followed the restart and Gordon came down pit road to top off the fuel. Crew chief Steve Letarte told Gordon that he was 2 laps short, but some caution laps might help him stretch it to the end. Keyword: Might.
Gordon restarted in 24th position with 35 laps to go. On the restart, David Ragan moved up the track in turn one and clipped Jamie McMurray to bring out the caution. Most of the lead lap cars came to pit road, while Gordon remained out to gain track position. He restarted in 6th place with 29 laps to go. He lost positions to Matt Kenseth and Regan Smith, before Denny Hamlin passed to send Gordon back to 9th with 26 to go. A debris caution slowed the field and set up another restart. Gordon opted to stay on the track and lost positions on the restart. He dropped to 17th with 20 laps to go as his hopes for a solid finish began evaporating in a hurry. With 15 laps to go, he backslid to 21st place. With 2 to go, he was running 23rd when Joey Logano spun in turn three to set up a green/white/checkered finish. Gordon came to pit road for tires. Gordon restarted 26th and was collected in a major wreck on the final lap after drilling Kasey Kahne’s wrecked car. Gordon posted his worst finish at Pocono since a 34th place effort in 2006 — notable for the heavy wall contact he made after spinning into the turn one wall. His understated comment after the wreck was that it just hadn’t been his day. He exited the car under his own power and quickly headed east.
source: gordonline.com
Audio
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BONUS AUDIO:
Joey Logano’s post race comments directed towards Kevin Harvick. He goes on to say that Kevin’s wife wears the firesuit in the family!
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All Star Race In Car Audio
May 23, 2010 by admin
Filed under Feature, Race Audio
May 23 – - Jeff Gordon’s night in NASCAR’s All-Star race didn’t even make it to the end of the first lap. Gordon hit the wall coming off turn 4 on lap 1. The contact hindered handling on the DuPont Chevrolet for the remainder of the night. Gordon was later caught up in a wreck which resulted in a 20th place finish.
Gordon started 8th in the first segment and drilled the wall coming off turn four on the opening lap. He fell from 8th to 11th while battling a tight handling condition due to the wall contact. On lap 40, he moved into 10th where he finished the first segment. Following a pit stop, Gordon started 13th in the second segment of 20 laps. However, he was hindered by tight handling and dropped to 16th before passing Dale Earnhardt Jr for 15th with 5 laps remaining in the segment. Gordon came to pit road several times between segments for track bar adjustments and restarted at the rear of the field. He gained two spots in the opening laps of the third segment and ran 18th. In the closing stages he moved up to 13th where he finished the segment. During the 10-minute break, the Dupont team worked on the track bar and tow of the end in the hopes of improving the handling. Gordon started the final segment 13th and was collected in an opening lap wreck. Gordon hit Mark Martin’s spinning car and damaged the front of the car after hitting the infield wall. The wreck ended a disappointing night for Gordon in NASCAR’s All-Star race.
source: gordonline.com
In Car Audio Audio
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Talladega In Car Audio
April 25, 2010 by admin
Filed under Feature, Race Audio
April 25 – - Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson did their best to throw ice water on what many viewed as a simmering fued after the race at Texas Motor Speedway. Unfortunately, that ice water quickly heated back to a boil as the drivers found each other on the track at an inopportune time at Talladega Superspeedway. Gordon was forced onto the apron with 7 laps to go by Johnson, and was then swept up in a wreck. Gordon finished the event in 22nd place. “The 48 is testing my patience,” said Gordon, in reference to his teammate. “It takes a lot to make me mad and I am pissed right now.” At the front of the field, Kevin Harvick passed Jamie McMurray in the tri-oval on the final lap to win his 12th career race.
Gordon started 5th and stayed on the inside line at the outset. He fell back to 27th place by lap 5 and ran in a second draft behind the leaders. On lap 7, he radioed that the lead pack was beginning to get strung out, and he would try and re-join the fray. Two laps later he climbed to the 19th position in the lead draft. He climbed into the top-10 on lap 15 behind a draft from Jimmie Johnson. Gordon slipped back to 14th before the competition caution on lap 20. Gordon restarted 13th after taking four tires. On lap 26, he hooked up in a tight draft with Jeff Burton and moved to 8th place. He stayed behind Burton and moved up to 5th on lap 27, before the outside line powered past. Gordon dropped to 22nd on lap 33 after choosing the wrong drafting line. He remained in the second draft for the next 15 laps.
On lap 48, Gordon worked with Tony Stewart in the second draft back in 24th position. The pair worked out a drafting arrangement to move up in the running order. Gordon came to pit road for a green flag stop on lap 65. After the stops cycled through, he ran in 20th place on the low line before drafting back into the top-10. The caution waved on lap 76 when Michael Waltrip hit the wall off turn four. Denny Hamlin spun toward the infield grass in the chain reaction incident. Pit stops followed with Gordon opting for left side tires and exited pit road in 3rd place. He took the lead of the race on lap 80 and ran in a tight draft with Elliott Sadler. Two laps later, Sadler was pushed into the lead by Kurt Busch. The caution waved on lap 84 after Johnny Sauter was turned sideways in the tri-oval. He bounced off Busch and Waltrip, while collecting Matt Kenseth and Paul Menard in the melee.
On the restart, Gordon pushed David Reutimann to the top spot. On lap 90, Gordon jumped to the high side to take the lead. However, his time at the front was short lived as the middle line powered past and pushed him out of the top-10 within seconds. Ten laps later he was in danger of losing the draft after he fell to 30th. Regan Smith’s blown engine on lap 100 brought the caution and allowed Gordon to make up the distance. Gordon spent the next 25 laps running in 24th with Mark Martin. With 60 to go, he hooked up with Martin and moved to 15th. Three laps later, he got a drafting push from Johnson to move into the top-5. However, he was hung in the middle line and lost positions. He fell back to 30th and ran there until green flag pit stops with 42 laps to go. Gordon changed two tires and ran 15th after the stops. With 30 laps to go, he moved to the front of the field for a single lap, before dropping back in the draft. With 12 laps to go, Bobby Labonte spun on the backstretch to bring out the caution. Gordon opted for two tires on pit road and restarted in 17th place.
On the restart, Gordon worked with Mark Martin to move into the top-10. However, with 7 laps to go, Gordon moved low on the backstretch and was forced onto the apron by Jimmie Johnson’s late move. Gordon slipped back after cracking the throttle and was collected in a wreck on the frontstretch after Jeff Burton hit the wall and spun into Gordon’s path. The DuPont crew made repairs and Gordon received the free pass to get back on the lead lap due to a wreck involving Johnson. Gordon was distantly behind the final battle for the lead as Harvick won in a photo finish. Gordon dropped to 10th in the series points standings, and trails Johnson by 193.
source: gordonline.com
Audio
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Jimmie Johnson Post Race Comments MP3 (apparently he didn’t know the havoc he caused because he mentions nothing about the block he put on the 24)
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Texas In Car Audio
April 19, 2010 by admin
Filed under Feature, Race Audio
April 19 – - There are few moral victories in racing, and rarely would a 31st place finish qualify in that category, but Jeff Gordon made a loud statement in the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Gordon led 124 laps, took no prisoners while racing a teammate, and looked to be in sound position for his first victory in more than a year. However, a late race wreck coming off turn four destroyed the National Guard Special Forces Chevrolet and left Gordon with his first DNF of the season.
Gordon started 12th and entered the top-10 on lap 21 with a pass on eventual winner Denny Hamlin. He steadily worked through traffic by passing Kurt Busch for 9th place on lap 40, and took 8th place from Kasey Kahne two laps later. He entered the top-5 for the first time on lap 48 by getting around Kyle Busch, and took 4th from Clint Bowyer on lap 55. An adjustment during a pit stop under caution on lap 77 moved Gordon up to 3rd in the running order. He dropped to 12th on lap 115 after pitting while others stayed on the track. On the restart, Gordon worked his way back toward the front of the field and gained six spots by lap 120. He re-entered the top-5 on lap 126 with a pass on Kurt Busch, and took the runner-up spot five laps later. He tracked down and passed Dale Earnhardt Jr for the race lead on lap 137. By lap 150, Gordon had extended to a 3-second lead. Gordon lost the lead during a pit stop sequence, but regained it from Earnhardt Jr on lap 182.
Gordon swapped the lead briefly with Jimmie Johnson with 100 laps to go. Gordon pulled up to the rear of Johnson’s car in turn four which loosened Johnson’s car to the point where he climbed the hill in the corner to save the car. As Gordon pulled low on the fronstretch, Johnson turned into the right side of Gordon’s car. The contact eventually resulted in a flat tire for Johnson and stirred ill-will by both drivers over the in-car radio. Gordon moved into the lead and maintained a comfortable distance as the laps wound down. However, David Reuitimann’s blown engine with 24 laps remaining slowed the field. Gordon opted for four tires and restarted in 8th place. He made his way to 7th on the inside of Tony Stewart coming off turn four with 17 laps to go. Stewart got loose and tried to save his car. He touched the right side of Gordon’s car, which further sent his car out of shape. Stewart then clipped the right rear of Gordon’s car sending him into the frontstretch wall. More than six other drivers were collected in the melee. Gordon exited his car and immediately went to Stewart’s wrecked car for an explanation. Stewart assumed blame for the wreck after viewing the replay. “It was my fault, I feel bad about doing something stupid like that,” Stewart said. “I didn’t plan on getting loose, but it is 100 percent my fault. It wasn’t (Jeff’s) fault, obviously. I got a chance to see it in the infield care center, it is definitely my fault. I apologize to all the teams and drivers that got caught up and their fans for it. We had a really good car there and just a shame that it happened let alone to some of your teammates like that.”
source: gordonline.com
Audio
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Steve Letarte’s Post Race Comments
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Jimmie Johnson Post Race Comments
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Tony Stewart Post Race Comments
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