Post by mthomson on Jun 28, 2016 3:59:33 GMT -5
So most are wondering how Dave Blaney won, i was surprised as well after looking at the results at the end of the race.
This is Blaney's first win in the winston cup, keep in mind he did get a top 10 here at this race but a top 10 and winning is a big difference.
First from my perspective of the race, I spent a lot of time trying to find a good setup... They were always so loose. Finally got one that would run in traffic well and had the speed with it. The other drivers qualified pretty quickly here and also notice I think the qual speeds actually are quicker than the track record here (as of 2001). I boosted up the AI to match my speeds to 97 or 98%.
I started mid pack but at the start made my way up to around 12th or so before I went for my planned pit stop at 20, basically I was pitting about 8-10 laps before everyone else.
The fuel window here was 30-33 depending on your driving style, but the race was 67 laps so I figured I would need 2 stops at least. My pitting early helped because i wasnt running longer on old tires and made up ground once the field evened out. Eventually I finished 10th but should of been better.
In other news, I figured Ryan Newman would of won this one, he seemed the best car out there today. But only one thing is 2 drivers made it on one pitstop, Dave Blaney and Kenny Wallace... They both had the first pit stops around Lap 37 while the rest of the field pit twice, 2nd time being around Lap 62-64. We also had no yellows so I will follow a different theme for the images, bascially going over some drivers and how their race went.
DNQ:
#1 again will be driven by Kenny Wallace
#45 Kyle Petty (DNQ)
#14 Ron Hornaday Jr.
AI - 98%
Results (click for full)
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Ryan Newman had a pretty good day considering it has only been his 3rd start of the season. He took the grid in 5th and was running up front most of the day leading 34 of the 67 laps. He would of been the winner if there was about 5-10 laps more due to 2 drivers making it on a fuel saving run.
Dale Jarrett was 4th in points for the championship, but Jarrett just did not have the car here today. He started towards the end of the pack and pretty much stayed there the entire day, he made it out of the 30+ position shortly but he only managed to finish 38th. This will cost him two positions in the standings dropping down to 6th.
Ricky Rudd was a contender for the winner here, even though he did not lead a lap he was up in the top 5 at some points of the race. I think he could of had a better finish if we had a few more laps to go. He was one of the guys who pit on the later laps of the 2nd pit stop so he was making up ground. He finishes 9th but loses out the 3rd spot in the standings by just 1 point.
The points leader Thomson did not start in a great position, but he is known for working through the field to get to the front. His highest position was 8th after a proactive pit plan to get new tires earlier than everyone else. He had a quick car but with early pit stops he just did not have enough time to improve any further than 10th... That still keeps the other drivers at bay in the standings.
Blaney will surprise more than a few people by winning, but aggressive and fast driving doesnt always win races. His team managed to win on one pit stop. Besides that he was running outside of the top 10 which would of helped him to stay in front of the cars who did pit.
This is Blaney's first win in the winston cup, keep in mind he did get a top 10 here at this race but a top 10 and winning is a big difference.
First from my perspective of the race, I spent a lot of time trying to find a good setup... They were always so loose. Finally got one that would run in traffic well and had the speed with it. The other drivers qualified pretty quickly here and also notice I think the qual speeds actually are quicker than the track record here (as of 2001). I boosted up the AI to match my speeds to 97 or 98%.
I started mid pack but at the start made my way up to around 12th or so before I went for my planned pit stop at 20, basically I was pitting about 8-10 laps before everyone else.
The fuel window here was 30-33 depending on your driving style, but the race was 67 laps so I figured I would need 2 stops at least. My pitting early helped because i wasnt running longer on old tires and made up ground once the field evened out. Eventually I finished 10th but should of been better.
In other news, I figured Ryan Newman would of won this one, he seemed the best car out there today. But only one thing is 2 drivers made it on one pitstop, Dave Blaney and Kenny Wallace... They both had the first pit stops around Lap 37 while the rest of the field pit twice, 2nd time being around Lap 62-64. We also had no yellows so I will follow a different theme for the images, bascially going over some drivers and how their race went.
DNQ:
#1 again will be driven by Kenny Wallace
#45 Kyle Petty (DNQ)
#14 Ron Hornaday Jr.
AI - 98%
Results (click for full)
[/url]Ryan Newman had a pretty good day considering it has only been his 3rd start of the season. He took the grid in 5th and was running up front most of the day leading 34 of the 67 laps. He would of been the winner if there was about 5-10 laps more due to 2 drivers making it on a fuel saving run.
Dale Jarrett was 4th in points for the championship, but Jarrett just did not have the car here today. He started towards the end of the pack and pretty much stayed there the entire day, he made it out of the 30+ position shortly but he only managed to finish 38th. This will cost him two positions in the standings dropping down to 6th.
Ricky Rudd was a contender for the winner here, even though he did not lead a lap he was up in the top 5 at some points of the race. I think he could of had a better finish if we had a few more laps to go. He was one of the guys who pit on the later laps of the 2nd pit stop so he was making up ground. He finishes 9th but loses out the 3rd spot in the standings by just 1 point.
The points leader Thomson did not start in a great position, but he is known for working through the field to get to the front. His highest position was 8th after a proactive pit plan to get new tires earlier than everyone else. He had a quick car but with early pit stops he just did not have enough time to improve any further than 10th... That still keeps the other drivers at bay in the standings.
Blaney will surprise more than a few people by winning, but aggressive and fast driving doesnt always win races. His team managed to win on one pit stop. Besides that he was running outside of the top 10 which would of helped him to stay in front of the cars who did pit.