Spring has arrived, and not long from now NASCAR will enter the dog days of summer. After a week off for the Easter holiday, the crew heads west to Phoenix International Raceway for the Subway Fresh Fit 600 on Sunday.
After a strong start to the season with finishes of 19th, 11th, 22nd and 10th, Scott Speed had a rough go during NASCAR's so-called spring short-track season.
At Bristol, a cut tire led to a 31st-place finish, and a week later at Martinsville, he ended up 33rd. He left Martinsville 21st in the point standings, four points behind 20th-place Kasey Kahne.
Speed needs a good run in Phoenix, where his average finish is 35.7 in three starts. The first time he competed at Phoenix was in November 2008. He ended that race with a face full of fuel cell, as David Gilliland's car landed on the hood/windshield of Speed's Red Bull Toyota during an accident; he finished in 40th.
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Brian Vickers’ luck, on the other hand, seems to be improving. Since Las Vegas, a race he classified as one of the worst in his career, Vickers has finished seventh, 15th and sixth to charge into the top 12 - albeit only six races in.
The sixth-place finish was his best in 11 starts at Martinsville, moving him to 12th in the overall standings. At this point last year, BV ranked 21st and used a late-season run to earn his way into the Chase.
Phoenix has never been particularly kind to Vickers – at least not in the race. He’s done well in qualifying, though. He has six top-10 starts, with five of those coming in the top five. He rolled off from the front row in his first two starts there, taking his best finish, a fifth, in 2005.
Look for a big finish in Phoenix, and keep up with the team at RedBullRacingUSA.com.
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