Any hopes that Reed Sorenson had of performing well in front of his hometown fans at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) literally hit the wall early during the BASS Pro Shops 500. While looking to make a pass on the outside of the No. 21 car, Sorenson was pushed up into the outside retaining wall, considerably damaging the right side of the Target Dodge. From that point on the team fought handling issues en route to a 29th-place finish.
“I’m not sure what happened with the No. 21 car,” said Sorenson after the race. “You’re going so fast here and he or his spotter just didn’t realize I was coming around on the outside that fast. He probably thought he was clear to move up and before you know it I was in the fence. I had no where to go.
“I don’t know if the rear end got bent or what, but the car was out of control for most of the race. The guys made all sorts of changes and we eventually got to do some repair work during some late race cautions, but that thing was a handful. Towards the end we got it pretty good and considering how the day started out, I’m pleased with where we finished. The guys stayed after it today and I’m really proud of their efforts.”
After starting 24th (based on owners points because qualifying was rained out) Sorenson quickly motored into the top 20, where he would remain until pitting under green on lap 49 for tires, fuel and air pressure adjustments. Just prior to making the stop Sorenson radioed in that he had no front grip (tight) in the corners.
Before the cycle of stops was completed, Sorenson made
contact with the outside wall avoiding the No 21 car, and from that moment on his hands were full. He dropped to 32nd before the next caution on lap 82.
“This thing is out of control,” Sorenson said immediately after the caution flag waved and he was able to catch a breather. “I’m wrecking loose,” he added.
He brought the car onto pit road for wholesale changes that included the addition of spring rubbers, along with four tires and fuel. After the stop it was discovered that the right rear tire was going down, probably as a result of contact with the wall.
The changes made to the Target Dodge didn’t make a difference because Sorenson quickly radioed in after the restart on lap 86 that the car was still too loose to drive. And so the story goes. No matter what changes the team made, nothing seemed to work.
After throwing pretty much everything but the kitchen sink at the Target Dodge, the handling began to come around after a pit stop on lap 243. With a little more control, Sorenson was able to battle from 35th to 29th prior to taking the checkered flag.
The Target team maintained 25th in the overall standings and they are 170 points out of 20th heading into the next event at Texas Motor Speedway on Nov. 5. Sorenson’s Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates teammates Casey Mears and David Stremme finished 28th and 39th respectively.
