Ford Ecoboost 400 Post-Race Report
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Results (with starting position) from the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway 1. (3) Kyle Busch, No. 18 Toyota 2. (13) Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Chevrolet SS 3. (8) Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Ford 5. (23) No. 42 Target Plaid Chevrolet SS (Larson) 13. (22) No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet SS (McMurray) Larson Closes out Season with Exciting Top-Five Finish at Homestead The checkered flag was waived for the final time in 2015 as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) wrapped up the season this past weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS). Larson and the Target team started the weekend strong and ended the same way, moving up from a 23rd place start to earn a convincing fifth-place finish, a NSCS best at HMS. Larson’s weekend was also highlighted by winning the NASCAR XFINTY Series race on Saturday, his first win in that series this season and first win overall for HScott Motorsports with Chip Ganassi. The team felt confident in the car all weekend, and while the first day on track found the Target Chevy needing improved grip and some help with the handling, Larson still posted the 10th quickest lap time in the opening round of practice. During qualifying the car’s handling was a bit too tight, subsequently advancing only to the second round, where he earned a 23rd starting position. The subsequent adjustments made to the car showed on Saturday when Larson paced the first practice session and posted very competitive multi-lap averages during the final practice of the weekend. After a delay of almost two hours for rain, the season finale got underway at HMS and Larson started his charge to the front. Although Larson’s car was somewhat tight handling to start the race, he continued improving his position as the crew worked to free up the car during pit stops. Larson cracked the top-10 by Lap 65, and from there he ran inside the top-10 for the remainder of the race. As Larson continued to outpace the leader, running just off the wall, he quickly moved towards the front during a long green flag run late in the race, which started on Lap 171 following the second to last caution of the day. After the restart, Larson moved into second and was closing quickly on the leader when the final caution was shown with nine laps remaining. Larson restarted in third and lost a couple spots on the subsequent restart for a very strong and well deserved fifth place finish. With the finish, Larson ends the season 19th in the NSCS driver point standings. NOTES OF INTEREST: Larson ranked first with the fastest speed late in a run, posting an average speed of .66 mph faster than the next driver Larson posted the fastest lap 56 times, the most for the 267-lap race by 12 over eventual winner Kyle Busch The caution flag was shown seven times for a total of 30 laps The lead changed 18 times among eight drivers TCGRFS QUOTEBOARD Kyle Larson, No. 42 Target Plaid Chevrolet SS – “Man, we almost had a win tonight. Our Target Chevy was really good all race. The car was fast tonight and the top lane was working, which allowed me to start closing in on the leader during that long green flag run at the end. If the race had stayed green, I think we could’ve won that race. We’ve had an up and down season, and I’m just so glad for this whole team that we had the kind of day we did. I would have liked to have ended our season in victory lane, but we did almost everything we could to get there. We’ve worked hard this year and not always earned the finishes we deserved, so happy to end this season on a high note.” McMurray Finishes 13th in Season Finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) teams made its final stop of the year in South Florida to put the finishing touches on the 2015 season as Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS) hosted the showdown to crown the 2015 NSCS Champion. Jamie McMurray and the No. 1 McDonald’s team completed the 267-lap race to cap the 2015 season with a 15th-place finish. The NSCS teams had limited track time on Friday as rain abbreviated the weekend’s first practice, however the No. 1 McDonald’s team logged the most laps in that session and posted top-five average lap times. McMurray started the season finale from the 22rd position and quickly worked his way through the field and into the top- 10 by lap 30. Although the race had a long stretch of green-flag runs that limited time on pit road for adjustments, McMurray competed with the 11th-best average running position (13.4) during the 267-lap race, ultimately finishing with a 13th-place result. NOTES OF INTEREST McMurray finishes the 2015 season 13th in the final point standings This is McMurray’s best season-long points finish since 2005 The caution flag was shown seven times for a total of 30 laps The lead changed 18 times among eight drivers CGRFS Quote board: Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Sherwin-Williams Chevrolet SS – “I would like to start by saying thank you to everyone involved with this race team. We have a great group of partners that make all of this possible, in addition to everyone that works on this team. The guys did a good job making adjustments on the McDonald’s Chevy tonight. We got a lap down early with the long green-flag runs and were able to get back on the lead lap. Josh (Sell) did a great job of filling in as crew chief tonight while Matt McCall iwas back home waiting for his new baby to arrive. I wish we could have gotten a better finish to close out the season, but we are continuously making gains.” The Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway was the final race of the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Season. The 2016 season will get underway with Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway Feb. 11, 2016. About Chip Ganassi Racing Teams Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 25 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include four cars in the IndyCar Series, two cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and one Prototype in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. Overall his teams have 18 championships and 170 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400 and six Rolex 24 At Daytonas and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Brownsburg, Ind. and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Pa. For more information log onto chipganassiracing.com .