Darnell’s Day Ends Again in the Garage to Finish 31st at Memphis
October 25, 200912:00 PM
Memphis, Tenn. (October 24, 2009) – It was eight days ago when Erik Darnell and his No. 6 Northern Tool + Equipment Ford Fusion were knocked out of the Charlotte race because of someone else’s error on the track. Today’s race at Memphis wouldn’t be any different. For the second straight race Darnell’s day ended way too early when he was involved in a wreck which was started by others on the track.
Erik Darnell went out Saturday morning for his qualifying run hoping to get the No. 6 NT+E Ford Fusion up front to begin the Kroger On Track For The Cure 250. Darnell was on pace to grab the pole on his second lap until he got loose coming out of turn three which erased any chances at all of taking the top spot. He ended up capturing the 22nd position to begin the race. By lap seven Darnell had moved up to the 14th spot, but was hung up on the top line of the track which was not where he wanted to be. He told Crew Chief Mike Kelley that if he was going to make a run at it today that it would have to be from the bottom half of the track.
Now holding onto the ninth position when the third caution dropped on lap 37, Kelley’s pit strategy was to bring the NT+E Ford to pit road. While the leaders stayed out, Darnell entered pit road taking four tires and fuel; putting him back in the 23rd position when racing restarted on lap 42. The fresh tires paid off as Darnell was the fastest car on the track picking up 13 spots over the next 14 laps.
A fourth yellow flag on lap 61 meant the leaders would be coming in, but Darnell’s stop earlier kept the No. 6 out on the track. The No. 6 Ford Fusion restarted on the outside of row one with leader Carl Edwards choosing to take the inside spot when racing resumed on lap 66. Two laps later the No. 6 was part of a four pack of cars that had separated themselves from the rest of the field. However, as more laps were put on Darnell’s old tires, the No. 6 took a free fall losing 19 spots over the next 52 laps. The long green flag run ended on lap 124 when the No. 28 of Kenny Wallace rear-ended Darnell coming out of turn one. There was no damage to the car, but Darnell was now down a lap due to the fact that the No. 11 of Mike Bliss who was now the race leader passed Darnell before the caution was thrown. The No. 6 entered pit road taking four tires, fuel and both air pressure and track bar adjustments. Darnell restarted in the 27th position on lap 130.
As Darnell continued running near the back of the pack with hopes of eventually getting back on the lead lap, his day ended 102 laps short of the checker flag. As he exited out of turn two he got into the back bumper of the No. 29 driven by Stephen Leicht who had slowed down because of the No. 39 of Eddie MacDonald who had wrecked and come to a complete stop in the middle of the track. After hitting Leicht, the No. 6 then slammed into MacDonald. Darnell attempted to make it back to pit road, but was unable to do so because of the extensive damage. A tow truck pulled the NT+E Ford Fusion to the garage where it sat for the rest of the race. For a second week in a row Darnell’s day ended because of someone else’s misfortunes.
“I don’t know what to say. We got knocked out again because of someone else. I really feel bad for this Northern Tool + Equipment team right now. We had a really good car today and these guys worked really hard to get it ready for today’s race. It just wasn’t our day. We started in the back, then made our way up front, then went back again. We then went down a lap and now we are here in the garage. It’s going to be a long flight back home tonight,” said Darnell.
Darnell and the No. 6 NT+E team will be off until the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Ford 300 on Saturday, November 21.
About Norhern Tool + Equipment
Northern Tool + Equipment has been a supplier of high-quality tools and equipment for more than 27 years, selling products through direct mail, the Internet and at nearly 70 retail locations in 11 states. Along with a deep selection of hand, power and air tools, Northern Tool + Equipment carries a wide variety of products, including generators, pressure washers, air compressors, hydraulics, small engines, trailers, water pumps, tractors, welding equipment and much more. Northern Tool + Equipment also serves as the exclusive distributor of NorthStarTM brand equipment, which is fabricated and assembled at the company’s 250,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility. For more information, visit www.northerntool.com.
About Roush Fenway Racing
Roush Fenway Racing is NASCAR’s largest team operating nine motorsports teams. Five in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with drivers Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and David Ragan; three in the Nationwide Series with Kenseth, Biffle, Edwards, Ragan, Erik Darnell, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and Colin Braun; and one in the Camping World Truck Series with Braun. For more information on any of the Roush Fenway Racing teams, log onto www.RoushFenway.com. For sponsorship inquiries please contact Robin Johnson at 704.720.4645.
More Headlines
