AJ Allmendinger earned
his career-best Cup finish
with a ninth-place result in
his first stock car race at
Kansas Speedway. Camry
drivers Denny Hamlin (11th),
Brian Vickers (15th) and
David Reutimann (19th) also
finished in the top-20
Sunday. Other Camry drivers
in the field included Kyle
Busch (28th), Dave Blaney
(31st), Michael Waltrip
(35th), Joey Logano (39th)
and Tony Stewart (40th). In
the NSCS 'Chase for the
Sprint Cup,' Hamlin sits
10th in the unofficial point
standings followed by Joe
Gibbs Racing teammates
Stewart (11th) and Busch
(12th).
AJ ALLMENDINGER, No. 84
Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red
Bull Racing Team Finishing
Position: 9th Was it a tough
race this afternoon? "With
24 laps to go, my arms felt
like jello. Hats off to my
Red Bull guys -- it's easier
to drive when you have a
good car."
Are you satisfied with a
top-10 finish today? "It was
a tough race out there.
Everybody was slipping and
sliding. These things are a
handful to hold on to. We
just had a good car. We had
kind of a mistake on pit
road where the tire got
away, it was really nobody's
fault, and that made it
tough to kind of get back to
the front. We had a great
car. The racing is so tough
out there. Everybody is
fighting so hard. You still
have to be aggressive, but
you have to leave it one
notch below over the top --
and it's a tough race. I'm
definitely going to sleep
well tonight."
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11
FedEx Toyota Camry, Joe
Gibbs Racing Finishing
Position: 11th Was your team
chasing a good set-up all
day? "We didn't have it. We
struggled for the balance
all day. We went from loose
to tight and back and forth.
Our balance wasn't exactly
where we needed it."
Is this a good finish
considering your struggles
with the Cup car all
weekend? "Yeah, we were able
to make way. It's nothing
like we're going to need if
we're going to compete for
the championship."
Did you think you had an
engine issue with 30 laps to
go? "It just changed tons on
us. I'm not sure exactly
what it was. Maybe something
went out of balance or
something. The engine just
changed a ton, but it didn't
look like it lost any
power."
Do you feel the Joe Gibbs
Racing cars are 'snake bit'?
"I've had it all year and
those other guys in our
group have had luck, and
I've had bad luck all year.
I'm used to it. We have a
situation where we are all
trying new stuff and trying
to get better. Right now, we
keep our stuff together."
What's your realistic
goal at this point in the
season? "For me, it's a top
-five in points -- that's
about all we can do."
Is the big shake-up still
ahead at Talladega? "That
could be an equalizer, but
one bad race for those other
guys aren't going to really
hurt the m that much if they
finish in the top-three
every week."
BRIAN VICKERS, No. 83 Red
Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull
Racing Team Finishing
Position: 15th
DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 44
UPS Toyota Camry, Michael
Waltrip Racing Finishing
Position: 19th
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M's
Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs
Racing Finishing Position:
28th What did you feel
happen to your race car? "It
was just like probably what
it sounded like -- just
sputtering and not running
clean."
Was there a piece of
paper found in the cowl that
was affecting the car? "I
don't know that they did. I
don't think they did."
How are you feeling now?
"I think it's pretty
self-explanatory to
everybody out there."
STEVE ADDINGTON, Crew
Chief, No. 18 M&M's Toyota
Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing What
happened with the race car
today? "We were 25 laps into
it and he (Kyle Busch)
thought the motor was doing
what it did last week and
coming apart. That wasn't
it. It was a fuel issue. We
came in, checked all the
lines and everything, and
couldn't find anything. But,
we've got a fuel pressure
issue."
How will you determine
what happened? "We'll go
back (to the shop) and just
dissect the whole car to see
what the problem was and see
if we can find anything."
Has this happened before?
"This is the first time.
There's a first time for
everything the last three
weeks."
Do you feel good about
returning to Talladega where
you won earlier this year?
"If we can keep it running
we should be in good shape
-- we'll see how it goes."
DAVE BLANEY, No. 22
Caterpillar Toyota Camry,
Bill Davis Racing Finishing
Position: 31st
MICHAEL WALTRIP, No. 55
NAPA Toyota Camry, Michael
Waltrip Racing Finishing
Position: 35th
JOEY LOGANO, No. 96 DLP
HDTV Toyota Camry, Hall of
Fame Racing Finishing
Position: 39th
TONY STEWART, No. 20 Home
Depot Toyota Camry, Joe
Gibbs Racing Finishing
Position: 40th