A promising qualifying certainly didn’t translate into success on track for Casey Mears in Charlotte, North Carolina, where NASCAR’s longest race of the year seemed like an eternity for the Red Bull squad.
With regular driver Brian Vickers coaching from the spotter’s stand, Mears and teammate Scott Speed fought the Red Bull Toyotas as the late afternoon event got underway and continued for the next four hours as the team could not find a solution to their handing problems.
After starting 13th, Mears quickly tumbled down the leaderboard and out of contention before going a lap down one-tenth of the way into the 600-mile race. Things didn’t improve from there as Mears fought a loose car for the rest of the race on the 1.5-mile, quad-oval Charlotte Motor Speedway and spent most of the time staying out of the leaders’ way.
Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR
It was a similar story for Speed, who had hoped that the grip levels would improve once the sun went down, but it simply didn’t happen. In the end, Mears finished the race in 29th position, four laps adrift, while Speed was one place and one lap further behind.
"We lacked overall grip at the start of the race, and that got us behind early," said Speed. "That was difficult to make up because the car was just so loose on entry and exit, but the whole No. 82 team worked really hard to get the car close to where we needed it to be. We definitely struggled here this weekend, but struggling is what makes success feel so good. I'm 100 percent confident in myself and in this team. We will figure it out."
On the bright side, Vickers missed the race but didn’t lose any ground in the points standings, staying in 27th position overall, although he’s sure to fall further as the season progresses. For Mears, driver points don’t really matter but the team does need to continue to collect owner points to ensure it stays in the top 35. In that regard, the No. 83 is 23rd. Speed is now 26th overall, but only 113 outside of the top 20, where he wanted to be by the end of the season.
The checkered flag at the 600 also marked the end of back-to-back home races for the team, which is based in nearby Mooresville. After sleeping in their own beds for two blissful weeks, the crew now gets back to the gruelling travel schedule that takes them to 23 racetracks in the next 24 weekends.
“Most of the teams and the crews are based out of Charlotte and it’s a real treat for them to be at home with their families for two weeks,” said Vickers, who lives in Florida.
“For me, I am always away from home for two weeks, but that’s alright because I get time at home and it’s good for the guys. It’s really a break for them.”
Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR
Vickers isn’t expected to attend this weekend’s race in Pocono, Pennsylvania, but he might show up in Sonoma later this month where he likes to take time to enjoy the premier wine country when the series stops in California.
Stay on track with the latest from nascar.com. You can also follow Brian Vickers on Twitter.
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