Danica Patrick Finishes 24th at Richmond

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Date: April 24, 2016

Event: Richmond 400 (Round 9 of 36)

NASCAR Whelen Driver Melissa Fifield

Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

Location: Richmond (Va.) International Raceway (.75-mile oval)

Start/Finish: 21st/24th (Running, completed 400 of 400 laps)

Point Standing: 25th (148 points)

Winner: Carl Edwards of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 Nature’s Bakery Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), finished 24th in Sunday’s Richmond 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.

Patrick started the event from the 21st position and ran just outside of the top-20 for the first half of the race. Near the midpoint of the event, Patrick dropped to 27th as she battled a lack of front grip. When the caution flag waved at lap 194, crew chief Billy Scott called for wedge and air pressure adjustments to improve the car’s handling. Patrick struggled on the ensuing restart but was able to gain ground later in the run.

When the caution flag waved at lap 312, Scott called for Patrick to stay out as the leaders pitted, getting the wave-around back to the lead lap. The move worked in the team’s favor, because when the caution flag waved again shortly after the field went back to green, the No. 10 Nature’s Bakery team was able to pit for tires and fuel at lap 321. Patrick lined up 20th with less than 70 laps to go. She lost several positions at the start of the run but was able to make up some ground, holding the 23rd position when the caution flag waved at lap 358.

In the final run of the race, Patrick lost several positions but was able to work her way back up to 24th before taking the checkered flag.

“The Nature’s Bakery Chevy was better on the longer runs today,” Patrick said. “It just didn’t take off on restarts. I couldn’t be as aggressive with it as I needed to be and ended up losing a bunch of ground each time. Billy (Scott) made a really great call for us to take the wave-around late in the race.

“At the end of the day, the car wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great either. Tough times don’t last; tough people do. And we just have to keep working at it hard to get to where we need to be.”

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Light Chevrolet SS, led the four-car SHR contingent Sunday at Richmond by finishing fifth.

Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Monster Energy/Haas Automation Chevrolet SS, started seventh and finished 10th.

In his 2016 Sprint Cup debut, Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy Chevrolet SS for SHR, started 18th and finished 19th.

Carl Edwards won the Richmond 400 to score his 27th career Sprint Cup victory, his second in a row and his second this season. It was also his 12th top-10 finish and second career win at Richmond.

Kyle Busch finished .675 of a second behind Edwards, while Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne and Harvick rounded out the top-five. Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr. and Kurt Busch comprised the remainder of the top-10.

 

There were eight caution periods for 49 laps, with all 40 drivers still running in the 400-lap race around the .75-mile oval.

 

With round nine of 36 complete, Harvick leads SHR in the championship point standings. He is second with 324 points, seven behind new leader Edwards. Busch is sixth with 279 points, 52 points out of first. Patrick is 25th with 148 points, 183 out of first. Stewart scored 22 points in his debut and is scored 101 points outside the top-30 standings.

The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the GEICO 500 on Sunday, May 1, at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The race starts at 1 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX.