Reed Sorenson and the Target team turned in one of their best qualifying efforts of the season (10th) at one of the toughest tracks on the NEXTEL Cup Series circuit – Bristol Motor Speedway. Sorenson and crew proceeded to put on an impressive display at the .533-mile short track, competing in the top 20 for a majority of the first half of the race. On lap 226, however, the No. 41 Target Dodge cut a left rear tire and Sorenson was caught up in an accident as a result. After major front end repair he returned to competition and eventually brought the car home in 36th at the completion of the 500-lap race.
Sorenson was able to maintain position during the opening laps of the event, only dropping to 12th place prior to the first caution on lap 60. After catching his breath, Sorenson radioed in that the Target Dodge was loose entering the corner and tight off. He went on to say he would much rather be on the looser side so crew chief Jimmy Elledge called him in for four tires, fuel, wedge and air pressure adjustments.
Racing resumed on lap 67 with Sorenson in 18th. He fought off any challengers for position until the next caution on lap 86. Since the No. 41 Dodge was still “a little loose in and tight off,” Sorenson pitted again for another round of adjustments to the chassis. The crew completed the stop and sent him back on the track in 24th.
During the third caution period on lap 114 Elledge took the opportunity to test some strategy, calling for only two tires during the Target team’s ensuing pit stop. The idea was to see how the car would perform versus those with four new tires, and also to gain track position. The track position aspect worked as Sorenson and crew started the next green flag run in 14th, but the two tire plan wasn’t as fruitful. The Target team dropped to 24th prior to the next caution on lap 201 and Sorenson’s comment just prior to pitting was the car was “horrible” that run.
Sorenson pitted for four tires, fuel and air pressure adjustments and returned to competition with a fresh outlook. Unfortunately just a handful of laps later he cut a tire, and before he could reach pit road for a replacement was caught up in an accident and sustained heavy front end damage.
The crew feverishly went to work repairing the Target Dodge, removing the nose and sheetmetal surrounding the front tires. Additionally they replaced the radiator before returning Sorenson to the track
approximately 40 laps later. From that point on Sorenson logged laps and eventually surpassed a few competitors that had dropped out of contention after his misfortunes.
“The first half of the race was pretty good,” Sorenson said after the race. “The car was a little loose in and tight off, but we were able to hold our own in the top-20. I cut a left rear tire about midway through and ended up wrecking before I could get to pit road. I was trying to get around too fast and couldn't use the brakes or turn left without wrecking. I was just trying to do too much with what I had. It's unfortunate because I think we were good enough for a top 15 finish, maybe better if we hadn't wrecked.”
Sorenson and the Target team dropped one position to 22nd in the overall standings. They are now just 79 points out of 20th and 202 out of 15th heading into the next event at California Speedway on Sept. 3. Sorenson’s Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates teammates Casey Mears and David Stremme finished 17th and 35th respectively.
Reed had a rough weekend at Bristol, crashing in both the Cup and Busch cars.
