ANOTHER TOP THREE RUN FOR REED, THIS TIME AT TEXAS
Reed Sorenson has been riding high on momentum this season. With only one minor hiccup, which his team triumphantly overcame in Atlanta, he entered the O’Reilly 300 at the Texas Motor Speedway second in the point standings.
After a week off following Bristol, Sorenson and the Discount Tire Co. team set in to next conquer the 1.5-mile Texas track. Thick notes from a recent test session filled the notebook of crew chief Brian Pattie giving Sorenson extra confidence on his side.
The Georgia native strapped in for practice and qualifying on Thursday and started off seventh on the speed chart in the one and only practice session.
Sorenson’s qualifying run in the No. 41 Dodge Charger then left him 15th on the speed chart.
“Qualifying went pretty good. We left a little out there, but not much,” a quick and to the point Sorenson said.
Friday was a free day for the Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Busch crew since the Busch Series garage was closed. After a day on the golf course, Saturday however was back to work as the green flag fell just after 2 PM EST.
With crew chief Pattie perched atop the pit box and the team’s spotter Lorin Ranier acting as the eye in the sky, Sorenson received some pre-race pep talks.
“Be smart on the start. 300 miles is a long day. Be cautious, we have all day to get to the front,” said Ranier.
And smart is definitely a word that defines the young racer Sorenson.
He quietly maneuvered his No. 41 ride up to the 11th position in less than 10 laps, turning laps as quick as the leader.
The race played out in typical fashion – with the Nextel Cup drivers on top. Sorenson however, played his role, which has also become a standard thing, and held his own with them at the top of the scoring pylon.
With 63 laps on the board and fighting a tight condition in his racecar he sat in the fifth position, turning the fastest lap of the day as Kasey Kahne led the event.
The field’s first round of green flag pitstops fell at the halfway mark, on lap 100. The Discount Tire Co. crew clocked in a
lightening fast stop, getting Sorenson back on track in the ninth position.
By the time the next round of pitstops fell on lap 148, crew chief Pattie had a decision to make: take on fresh tires like the remainder of the leaders –or- try something different and take on fuel only.
Pattie called for a gas and go putting Sorenson in position number one.
“We weren’t as good in practice as when we tested so we made a mock run to make sure our car was decent. Everybody else had one or two laps on their sets of tires and we had about 12 on our tires. I was trying to be smart until the end of the race. It all worked out. I was sweating there for a while,” said Pattie of his decision.
The call not only put the car in the lead but also gave Sorenson valuable bonus points.
With the leaders running on fresher tires Sorenson lost a few positions but continued to sail around the 1.5-mile track gunning to the finish. His heart rate may have jumped a little with just over 60 laps remaining. While making the pass on the lapped car of Derrike Cope in turn four, the 41 got sideways. Fortunately, the hotshoe saved his ride from what could have been a disaster.
Reed was good enough to be in a class of his own at Texas, but he came home third. (Getty Images)
“One time I got it pretty sideways. It got a little loose on the high side. I thought we were going around but we saved it, lost maybe a spot or two. But, it’s better then hitting the fence,” Sorenson said after the race.
As crunch time got closer Sorenson continued to run solidly in the top five. After finally getting a fresh set of tires on his Dodge, yet another yellow fell with 39 laps to go giving Pattie another chance to call for fuel only under what would become the final pitstop of the day.
The restart fell laps later and the 41 sat second behind race leader Jamie McMurray.
Again, the yellow flag fell with 43 laps to go. At the time,
McMurray and Sorenson were battling for the lead with just over a second lead over the third place car of David Green.
Sorenson then quickly took the top spot and looked as though he’d sail to his second win of the season but with just six laps on the board, Kasey Kahne made the pass for the lead.
The ninth and final yellow of the day fell just one lap later, setting the field up for a green-white-checkered flag finish.
After the restart Kahne jumped out to the lead and Greg Biffle made a pass on Sorenson for the runner-up spot.
Sorenson comfortably settled into third at the finish.
“We had a little bit older tires than those guys behind us. With about 30 laps to go I was giving all I had but it just wasn’t enough to hold off Kasey and Greg. We had a pretty good car. We were working on it all day and it got better and better and had a top five there at the end,” Sorenson of his day.
Next up for Reed and the Discount Tire Co. team, a trip out west to the Phoenix International Raceway for racing under the lights. Last season CGRwFS and the 41 team claimed the win with driver Jamie McMurray behind the wheel and just a few weeks ago, retested the track with Sorenson.
“We ran quicker than we did last year with Jamie. We have a pretty good car and a good shot at it. It seems to be more Reed’s style,” crew chief Brian Pattie says of the upcoming race - and the team's test.
“Of course, he excels on every course but he likes the shorter tracks better than the bigger tracks. We should have a good run.”
