Win No. 1- Vickers on the Brink of the Chase

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Win No. 1: Vickers on the Brink of the Chase

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Win No. 1: Vickers on the Brink of the Chase

Aug 17, 2009

Red Bull Racing Team officially broke into NASCAR’s premier series on Feb. 25, 2007. On Sunday — 903 days later — Red Bull Racing Team broke into the winner’s circle, as Brian Vickers drove the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota to victory in the CARFAX 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

The team’s first victory in the Sprint Cup Series came at the most critical of times, as Vickers has been fighting for a berth in the Chase all season. Seven weeks ago, Vickers was a mere mathematical factor in NASCAR’s postseason. Now, he’s a legitimate threat, having gained 185 points on the top 12 in the past six races.

He ranks 13th in the standings — only 12 points behind 12th with three races remaining before the Chase begins Sept. 20 at New Hampshire.

“I just can’t thank these guys enough,” Vickers said. “Everybody at the Red Bull shop, Red Bull Racing team, Toyota, Toyota Racing Development … thank you so much. We’ve gone through a lot of pains together and this one feels pretty good.”

The victory was the second of Vickers’ Sprint Cup career and first since October 2006 at Talladega — a span of 87 races. Regardless of the Chase, the 25-year-old from Thomasville, N.C., is on pace for the best season of his career with a series-leading six poles, four top fives and 11 top 10s.

But making the Chase would be nice.

“That’s a huge gain on the Chase, and that’s where we really want to be,” Vickers said. “This win is so special to everyone at Red Bull and Toyota, but being in the Chase would mean a lot to us.”

Vickers, coming off his third straight Sprint Cup pole at Michigan and second-place finish in Saturday’s Nationwide Series race, was told by crew chief Ryan Pemberton to conserve fuel after the No. 83’s final pit stop on with 50 laps to go. Vickers feathered the throttle as much as he could, but when it was go-time, he went, blowing past Jimmie Johnson with three laps remaining. He ended up holding off four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon and a hard-charging Dale Earnhardt Jr.

On that decisive stop, Pemberton opted for only two tires and put the No. 83 in a position to win.

“I pretty much put the pressure on him there on that run,” Pemberton said. “He needed to get exactly or better than what he had at this race last time, and he did exactly that. It’s almost probably to the half gallon. That's pretty cool to be able to get it that close. I won’t say it will happen every time, but that was cool to put that pressure on him, that gamble and it paid off.”

Vickers trailed Johnson by a few car lengths entering the final few laps, but Johnson’s No. 48 ran dry and wiggled down the frontstretch.

“There was part of me that was terrified because I knew there was a chance that we would run out, but there was a part of me that was kind of excited because I felt like I knew what we needed to save and we went through the exact same thing last time,” Vickers said. “I really felt like we had the fuel to get to the end, but you never know. The last thing I want to do trying to get in the Chase is run this thing out of fuel.”

On the opposite end of Vickers’ victory was teammate Scott Speed. The 26-year-old rookie qualified a strong 11th — the sixth time he’s timed in 11th or better this season. As pit stops cycled through, however, in the closing laps, Speed slipped into the 20s and eventually ran out of fuel. He finished 34th.

Speed’s No. 82 Red Bull Toyota lost ground in the car owner standings — 160 points out of the top 35.