"The Lady in Black" may have had a makeover with its recent resurfacing but Darlington Raceway proved to be the same beast on Saturday night in the Dodge Challenger 500 as drivers battled the tricky 1.336-mile track. UPS driver David Reutimann fought a loose-handling condition throughout the race but managed to bring home a 19th place finish in the #44 Toyota.
"Even with the new asphalt, you still have to race the race track. That hasn't changed," Reutimann said following the race. "The car was loose all night and I found the wall a couple of times but overall it was a good effort for the UPS Team. We had some issues tonight with our cooling system, and that's probably the hottest I've ever been in a race car, so it took a lot of concentration to get to the checkered flag but we'll take a week to enjoy the All-Star Race and then get back to work at Charlotte."
Reutimann started the event from the 30th position and quickly accelerated through the field. In the opening laps of the race, Reutimann made contact with the outside wall while working to avoid an accident between the #19 and #20 cars. Fortunately, a change of the right side tires and a quick pull to the fenders of the #44 Toyota allowed Reutimann to return to the track and continue his charge to the front. By lap 50, the UPS Team broke into the top-20 with its sights set on the top-10.
Even with the loose-condition, Reutimann continued to clock quick lap times, at time the fastest car on the track. The Florida native cracked the top-15 by lap 90 and moved into the 11th spot on lap 128.
In addition to battling the race car and a tough track, Reutimann also combated the heat. With temperatures reaching the mid-80s prior to the start of the race, Reutimann's cock pit took on extra heat when extremely hot air instead of cool air was pumped directly into his helmet. On every pit stop, the UPS Team delivered ice packs and water bottles to their driver through the window net so that he could attempt to cool his body temperature during the remaining laps.
Reutimann ran as high as the 10th position in the closing stages of the race but a lack of fresh rubber saw the #44 drop into the 20th spot. With the field spread out under green flag conditions in the final laps, Reutimann managed to pick up one spot to finish 19th on the lead lap.
Kyle Busch scored his third victory of the season on Saturday night by dominating the Dodge Challenger 500. Busch led for most of the evening but received a black flag penalty for a missing lug nut midway through the race. The penalty placed Busch at the tail end of the lead lap but the #18 car worked its way back through to the field to retake the lead with 60 laps remaining in the race.
Teammate Michael Waltrip finished 24th in the #55 Toyota on Saturday night, two laps behind the race winner. In his first Sprint Cup start at Darlington Raceway, Michael McDowell finished in the 28th position after starting 18th in the #00 Toyota.
Next week Dale Jarrett will return to the wheel of the #44 UPS Toyota for his final race in the Sprint Cup Series. Jarrett will compete in the Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway on May 17th as 20 plus drivers battle for a $1 million first-place prize. David Reutimann is scheduled to drive the #00 Toyota in the All-Star Showdown, a preliminary race to the All-Star event. Reutimann will be shooting for a top-two finish in the Showdown to transfer to the main event
The Sprint All-Star Showdown is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. ET with live television coverage provided by The Speed Channel starting at 7 p.m. ET. Radio coverage will be broadcast by the Motor Racing Network (MRN). The Sprint All-Star Race will follow on Speed with live coverage beginning at 9 p.m. ET.
