FOYT
FINISHES SEASON HIGH 16TH AT HOMESTEAD
HOMESTEAD, Fla. - After a blistering 400-mile race, Larry Foyt climbed
out of the Harrah's Dodge with a gleam in his eye and a smile on his
face.
On a sunny day at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the 26 year-old
rookie finished a season-high 16th in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series'
final race of the 2003 season. This coming after he qualified a
season-high 12th on Friday. Bobby Labonte won the race after Bill
Elliott blew a tire on the last lap.
"Today was so much fun," said an exasperated Foyt. "We've been
struggling all year, but we never gave up. This was a great way to
end the season."
Foyt's previous best performances came in the last two races at
Phoenix and Rockingham, when he finished 28th in both.
"The last three weeks have been great," Foyt said. "We've
finally been able to be competitive and race guys on the track.
"I really need to thank Ray Evernham and Sammy Johns. They've
helped us out so much this weekend and it's been a major boost."
Foyt fell behind early in the race after an accident left
debris all over the track. After most of the field pitted, Foyt
started to feel a problem with his right rear tire and was afraid it
may have been going flat. The team pitted on the next lap, costing
them a lot of track position. On the restart, Foyt was 35th.
After several green flag runs, Foyt hadn't made much progress
because of a loose race car and was fighting to stay on the lead lap.
"I felt like I was just hanging on," said Foyt. "The car really
needed to be out in clean air, but we could never seem to get any in
the first half of the race."
The team pitted after a caution on lap 122 of the 267-lap
event, and that's when the Harrah's Dodge came alive.
"We took a rubber out of the right rear on that stop and the
car was the best it had been all race long after that," said Foyt.
"That's when the race got fun."
Slowly but steadily, Foyt started picking up positions and
found himself in the top-20 with just over 50 laps remaining.
"That last 50 laps was a blast," said Foyt. "We were really
racing hard back there and I think the right side of my car proves
that. The guys in front of me knew my car could run well on the high
side of the track and they did everything they could to block me."
Not only did Foyt finish a season-high 16th, but he finished on
the lead lap for the first time this year without the help of NASCAR's
'lucky dog' rule, which allows the first car one lap down to regain
lead-lap status after a caution.
"That was big for us," said Foyt. "Going into this race we knew
if we could stay on the lead lap then we would come away with a good
finish. The guys did a great job with the pit stops and I just took it
from there.
"I'd really like to thank Harrah's for all their support this
year. They've stuck with us and helped us try to turn this program
around. I'm truly grateful for all their hard work."
Momentum is a precious thing.
In
each of the last two races, Larry Foyt and the No. 14 Harrah's Racing
team finished a season-high 28th. They carried that momentum to south
Florida by qualifying a season-high 12th for the Ford 400 at
Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Foyt's previous best qualifying effort was 14th at Michigan
International Speedway. Jamie McMurray won the pole for the final
event of the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup season.
"That's a good start to the weekend," said Foyt. "It's great. For all
my guys, that was really for them. They said 'Hey, we don't need this
car. Bring back a steering wheel or put it in the show' and I said you
got it. They've stood behind me all year and it's great for them.
"I really need to thank Evernham Motorsports for all their support
today. They helped us out a lot with the engine and setup of the car."
Without a provisional to fall back on and after posting the 41st
quickest time in practice this morning, Foyt left the No. 14 crew a
little uneasy about their chances of making the race.
"I told them not to worry before we qualified because we had it in the
bag," said Foyt. "I knew we would be fine, but I didn't expect this. I
wish we could line up and start the race right now!"
Unfortuantely for Foyt, he'll have to wait until Sunday. The race can
be seen on NBC starting at 12:30 PM ET.
Notes & Quotes: Ford 400 Homestead-Miami
Speedway Homestead, Florida
Broadcast Information:
• Qualifying: 3 p.m. on TNT
• Race: 1:350 p.m. on the Speed Channel
*All times are EST
Race Length:
• 400 miles (267 laps)
Track Records:
Qualifying:
• 156.440 mph (35.518 seconds) set by Steve Park on 11/10/00
Race:
• 140.335 mph set by Tony Stewart on 11/14/99
Notes:
• For the second consecutive weekend, the Harrah's team equaled their
best finish of the year by finishing 28th at North Carolina Speedway.
• Homestead-Miami Speedway added 20 degrees of variable banking to the
track over the fall. NASCAR will hold a test session for all Winston
Cup teams on Wednesday.
• The best finish for A.J. Foyt Racing at Homestead was 11th in 2000.
• Larry Foyt has competed twice at Homestead in the NASCAR Busch
Series. His best finish was 24th in 2001.
Larry Foyt on Homestead-Miami Speedway:
"It should be an interesting week with the new banking. I haven't seen
pictures of it yet, but I did play it on the new EA Sports video game.
We test there on Wednesday and I can't wait to see what it's like.
We've built up a little bit of momentum over the last two races and I
hope we can carry it to Homestead."
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