The #55 Napa Auto Parts Dodge crossed the stripe 36th and four laps down in the Banquet 400, today's Nextel Cup race at Kansas Speedway. Driver Michael Waltrip suffered the misfortune of a caution just as he was coming off pit road, as well as a speeding penalty on that stop.
The call to start engines came at 2:12pm ET.
"Hey, Michael, we're rolling here. Third time by," his spotter said four minutes later. "The 16's having a problem, Michael, so you're going to have to go around him."
Crew chief Tommy Baldwin Jr pointed out the pit box as the #55 drove by. "Michael, you've got the 43 behind us and the 41 in front of us." After a minute, he asked, "What's on fire up behind Turn 3 over there, Jas?"
"Nah, I think it's fireworks over there," came the response.
"It's a pretty big fire."
Next, Mikey judged pit road speed. "It looks like four grand is all I can get out of us. 4,000."
The team agreed with their driver's assessment.
Moments later, Mikey related a story to his crew chief. "Hey, Tommy. I had a parrot who could talk. But he never told me he was hungry. So he died."
"10-4. 10-4 on that," Baldwin Jr responded.
"Okay, Michael. One to go at the line."
Baldwin Jr told Mikey to check his belts and fans. "Have fun today. Guys, I appreciate your hard work all weekend. We'll work on it all day. We'll be all right."
"Okay, Michael. 267 laps. Have a good day here," Baldwin Jr said.
"Pace car's off," the spotter announced. "Stay ready. Green flag, green flag, green flag."
Kasey Kahne led the field to the green flag at 2:22pm ET, with Mikey rolling off 35th.
"Stacking up on the bottom, right in front of you. Clear high after him. All clear."
Mikey had passed Chad Chaffin on the first lap of the race. He was looking under Jamie McMurray, working on the next spot.
"Three-wide. Still three," his spotter warned. "Still three. 21's still on the apron. Now two-wide."
McMurray got away as Ken Schrader worked his underside.
"Three-wide. You're clear. All clear."
"Feels like we have two hundred pounds of air in the right front," Mikey reported on lap 3. "It's just plowing." He was still 34th, although he had passed McMurray.
"21's with him," the spotter warned the next time around the track. McMurray passed. Lap 7 saw Mikey lose a spot to Ken Schrader. Travis Kvapil worked on him next, along the bottom.
"Three-wide. Two-wide," said the spotter on lap 7. Robby Gordon and Travis Kvapil were both under him, and David Stremme's #40 came next. The #55 was cleared behind the #40.
"I am just so loose. The front won't turn," Mikey reported.
"10-4," was Baldwin Jr's response. He was now 39th, after Gordon, Kvapil, and Stremme's pass.
Smoke plumed in front of the Napa Dodge. The first caution came on lap ten for Robby Gordon's spin. Jamie McMurray got into Elliott Sadler at the same time. Mikey dove low to avoid Gordon's #7.
"It just feels like the right front tire won't stick," Mikey complained. "There's no side bite, no forward bite. The feeling it gets is chattering the right front tire."
Baldwin Jr wanted a track bar adjustment, to go two up on the left rear wedge, and to take a rubber out.
"And I might have hit the apron there when he spun out, so you might want to check that right front valance," Mikey adviced.
Mikey was guided to his pit box.
"4,000. 16's inside. Down by the 2 car. Let him go," Baldwin Jr directed. Mikey spent just under sixty seconds on pit road, total. Meanwhile, Ryan Newman picked up the lead from Kahne.
"Coming to the green," the spotter said. Racing resumed on lap 14. Jimmie Johnson took the lead almost immediately. "Pace car's off. Stay ready. Green flag, green flag, green flag. 7's trying to look outside."
Mikey went outside the #37 of Bill Elliott and tailed Kvapil's #32. He was 39th when he returned to green but 38th by the end of the first lap back. Meanwhile, Elliott Sadler went to the garage with problems.
"Wrecking off of 4. Wrecking off of Turn 4," his spotter said.
Lap 17 saw the second caution. Ryan Newman had gotten loose on his own, spun, and clipped Jeff Burton. Kevin Harvick spun in the smoke with Jeff Gordon behind him, but neither appeared to have made contact.
"Feel any better, Mike?"
"I didn't run long enough to tell for sure," Mikey replied, "but initially no. It just... I don't know. It just... does what I said. It feels like it won't turn, and then I get really loose off."
"10-4. Pit road is open. Let's come in and top off, guys, and let's go another two up on the left rear wedge." Baldwin Jr added that he wanted his driver to come in with one to go.
"All right, Mike. 4,000 and second gear. 4,000," his spotter said as the #55 hit pit road with one lap to go before the restart. "10 away."
"3, 2, 1," Baldwin Jr finished. After two seconds, he said, "All right, go ahead." Mikey left the box with his splash of gas.
Lap 19 saw the restart. Jimmie Johnson led, and Mikey was 41st.
"41 spinning behind you," the spotter noted. "Green is still out. Green is still out.
"Yellow is out. Yellow is out. He spun again off of four and made some contact. You've got the 41 sitting in the middle of Turn 4 now. There's debris all down the race track. Just be careful there." He warned his driver to go along the low side to avoid debris by the O'Reilly's sign.
Reed Sorenson's spin drew the third caution on lap 20. Mikey was in 40th, having passed Chad Chaffin.
"Pit road's open," informed the spotter.
"We'll do the same thing when it's one to go," Baldwin Jr told the team. "Well come in and top off, guys."
Mikey lifted his visor and wiped his eyes on lap 22, under the yellow flag. He pit the next time around the track, giving up 39th. The Napa Dodge spent a hair over thirty seconds on pit road and was now back to 41st. Mikey was the last driver on the track, with Sorenson and Sadler still in the garage.
Johnson led the lap 25 restart, with Mikey in 41st. He looked under Chad Chaffin's #61 and passed it through Turns 3 and 4. The #55 was all over Kenny Wallace's #78 next, as he ran 40th.
Lap 30 saw Scott Riggs' #10 take the lead, and Mikey passed Wallace the next time around the track, along the high side. On lap 35, Clint Bowyer looked under Riggs for the top spot. Bowyer ultimately took it on lap 37.
For the next dozen laps, other cars were well out of Mikey's sights. Bowyer had picked up a two-second lead over Riggs by lap 49, when the #55 came upon other competitors. He got around Joe Nemechek immediately, and picked off Travis Kvapil on lap 50. Mikey was now 37th, and looking to pass Tony Raines' #96. He passed Raines along the outside on lap 51. Four laps later, Mikey passed Todd Kluever along the outside and was marked 35th the next time around the track.
The yellow flag waved on lap 59 for the fourth time; NASCAR found debris on the backstretch. Mikey wiped his eyes again, and he took a drink on the next laps. Drivers made stops under yellow, and Mikey was one of them. The Napa Dodge took on four fresh tires and spent just over 44 seconds on pit road. Travis Kvapil was marked in the top spot.
Dale Earnhardt Jr led the lap 64 restart. Mikey was in 35th, and he was all over Terry Labonte's #44. Sterling Marlin slid back, allowing Mikey to overtake him along the underside. Lap 66 saw Mikey marked in 33rd. He stuck with Labonte's #44.
The fifth caution came on lap 68 for David Gilliland, who spun on his own in front of Bobby Labonte. Mikey had to drive through smoke. He warmed his tires under the yellow, on lap 70.
Lap 72 saw the restart, with Earnhardt Jr in the lead. Mikey was 29th, as others made stops and he did not. He fell to 31st, then to 33rd on lap 75. Two laps later, he was 34th and 35th on the next lap. One lap later, he was back to 38th.
Kyle Busch took the lead on lap 80, and Mikey picked up 37th two laps later. He passed Todd Kluever for one spot on lap 86. On lap 99, Mikey passed Sterling Marlin along the outside, advancing to 35th.
Race leader Busch had caught Mikey by lap 103. The #55 went a lap down to the #5 by the end of the circuit. Marlin passed on the low side on lap 109, moving Mikey back to 36th.
Lap 115 saw Mikey pass Dave Blaney along the high side. Three laps later, he picked up another spot when Terry Labonte pit, and he picked up another on the next circuit when Jamie McMurray made a stop. Mikey was now 33rd. Bill Elliott looked under him and passed on lap 121, but Mikey remained 33rd with Jeff Green's pit.
Green flag stops among the leaders began on lap 123 when Harvick and Kenseth came to pit road. Mikey was now 31st. Kasey Kahne and Dale Earnhardt Jr made stops the next time around the track. Lap 126 saw Kyle Busch pit, giving the top spot to Jimmie Johnson. Mikey was up to 23rd at that point. Lap 127 saw Mikey being marked as back on the lead lap, as stops continued. He was now 18th.
Ryan Newman picked up the top spot when Johnson hit pit road on lap 128. Mikey was 15th.
Mikey was on pit road on lap 129, as Kyle Busch reclaimed the lead with Newman's stop. The crew tugged on the right front fender as the #55 took on four fresh tires. Mikey spent just under fifty seconds on pit road.
The yellow flag waved just as he hit the stripe to return to the track. Jamie McMurray had spun on the low side, all by himself. Mikey held his hand out the window as he drove under yellow, and he took a drink of water too.
"Pit road's still closed. Closed. Closed," his spotter said. NASCAR penalysed Mikey one lap for speeding on pit road.
"They want us to go to pit road and give that lap back," Baldwin Jr said. "They just noticed it now."
"You told me to go on along," Mikey replied. "Why did you tell me that?"
Baldwin Jr said that's what NASCAR told him to do originally.
"That's not a stop and go. That's a drive-through," Mikey commented.
"Hey, buddy. Where are you, buddy? Are you grabbing that stuff?" Baldwin Jr asked someone.
A crew member said he was getting whatever they needed.
"All right," the spotter said. "They want us to come to pit road now. 4,000. They just said we need to make a lap up is all. 4,000."
"Come as deep in the box as you can, as deep in the box as you can," Baldwin Jr told his driver. "Are they still picking up a lot of stuff, Jason?"
The spotter said it wasn't one to go yet. "They are blowing one and two, Tommy, so it might be another lap or two."
"It's going to be one to go when you get back. One to go when you get back," the spotter added. "Michael, they want us to start at the tail end of the longest line for pitting too soon."
Mikey pit again before the restart, as he had to restart at the end anyway.
"4,000. Plenty of time," Baldwin Jr reminded as Mikey went back to the track.
"Coming to the green," said the spotter. "Pace car's off. Stay ready. Green flag green flag green flag."
Kyle Busch led the lap 136 restart, with Mikey in 38th and two laps down. Mikey looked under Bill Elliott's #37 and passed; however, Elliott was two laps ahead of him.
"Wow. That's as loose as I've ever been in my whole life," Mikey commented.
"Two more coming," the spotter told him. "Clear after that 17."
"Wrecking in front of you," he warned moments later. "Stay high. Stay high. Yellow is out."
The seventh yellow flag was for Matt Kenseth's #17 spinning on his own on lap 146. Mikey barely dodged him through the smoke.
"What was it doing there, Mike?" Baldwin Jr asked his driver.
Mikey reported, "It was just real real loose, but it was getting a little bit better."
"Front was turning good?"
"Yeah, front was turning a lot better. Just real, real loose."
"10-4," Baldwin Jr acknowledged, and he made the call to pit. "Four tires and one pound out of the left rear. One pound out of the left rear and four tires."
"Pit road's open," the spotter informed. "Lead lap cars."
Mikey stopped with lapped traffic, and he was on pit road for forty-three seconds.
"It will be one to go at the line," said the spotter. Sterling Marlin was marked in the race lead. When Marlin pit, Bowyer took the top spot.
"Pace car's gone. Stay ready," the spotter said on lap 150. "Green flag green flag green flag. Three-wide. Two-wide."
Mikey was 38th. He rode under Ken Schrader's #21, and then Carl Edwards joined them.
"Three-wide. Two.
"Slow on the bottom - the 45.
"Still outside - the 1. One more coming. Clear high behind this 25. Clear right there. 17's coming two back. Right in front of you, the 11. Stay low. Keep coming, keep coming. No yellow. Yellow is out, yellow is out.
"Just to let you know, he's moving. Race track is clear."
The eighth caution was on lap 153 for Denny Hamlin. His #11 spun.
"It's just out of control, out of control," Mikey said of his own car. "For ten laps, it seems okay - driveable, but it backed into the turns. Real loose."
Baldwin Jr called for fuel and for two rounds down on the track bar.
"Got a safety truck up high at the exit of Turn 4," the spotter warned. When the #55 went to pit road, he added, "4,000 and second."
"Two down on the track bar and fuel, guys. Two down on the track bar and fuel. Fill 'er up, guys," Baldwin Jr told his team.
"10 away."
"3, 2, 1."
"Watch the 29, Tommy," the spotter warned.
"Watch the 29," the crew chief repeated to the driver.
"One to go when you get back.
"Pace car's off. Stay ready. Green flag green flag green flag," the spotter led Mikey back to the stripe on lap 158. Bowyer led, and the #55 was 38th and two laps down.
Jimmie Johnson took the lead not too long into the run.
"Got a wreck in Turn 2, wreck in Turn 2. Yellow is out. Race track is going to be clear when you get there. Race car down on the apron - the 07."
Lap 173 saw the nineth caution for Clint Bowyer's spin.
"What was it doing there, Mike?" Baldwin Jr asked.
"It was just real real real loose, but when you tighten it up, it doesn't help nothing," Mikey replied.
"Did that track bar help you?"
Mikey said it really hadn't done anything. "I don't drive it; it drives me. I just have to follow it around. As far as keeping up with the field, that's as good as it's felt, but man!" He said there's not a lot you can do getting into the turn if you're spinning out.
Baldwin Jr called for a pound of air out of the left rear and for another track bar adjustment.
Drivers made stops under yellow. Mikey came in the next time around with the other lapped cars. He spent forty eight and a half seconds on pit road.
"Sorry, guys, I was looking at my notes. I didn't remind him to keep his wheels straight," Baldwin Jr apologised.
"You're going to have a safety truck in Turn 1 down low along the white line, looking for a piece of debris," warned the spotter.
"Pace car's off. Ready? Green flag green flag green flag," the spotter said on lap 177. Carl Edwards led, and Mikey was 38th and two laps down. His spotter warned him that the #10 car of Scott Riggs was real slow up ahead, along the bottom groove.
Mikey was warned that the #12 was spinning behind him; Ryan Newman had gotten loose in the outside groove. The tenth caution came on lap 181. Jimmie Johnson had just taken the lead from Edwards.
Mikey asked his team to come down another round on the track bar, and Baldwin Jr said he would. Mikey made his stop with the lapped traffic. He overshot his box and had to back up on pit road.
"Pace car's off. Stay ready. Green flag green flag green flag."
Racing resumed on lap 186 with Johnson leading. Mikey was still 38th, two laps down.
"Two by two. Outside's covered," the spotter warned. "Still out there."
On lap 191, Terry Labonte passed, dropping Mikey back to 39th.
"Got a wreck in Turn 2. Wreck in Turn 2. Back it down, stay low," warned his spotter.
The eleventh caution came next.
"Was it tightening it up yet, or still loose?"
Mikey said he could go when he is in the back. "It was loose the other time, but I felt I was hanging on better."
Baldwin Jr called for a right rear air pressure change. Drivers made stops under yellow, and Mikey pit with lapped traffic. Baldwin Jr reminded his driver to set the wheels straight.
"Go go go. Half a lane, half a lane, half a lane. 4,000. Don't speed here. 4,000," Baldwin Jr directed his driver off pit road.
His spotter warned him that the #5 was trying to get to the back of the pack.
Johnson led the lap 200 restart. Mikey was 36th.
"66 is real slow on the bottom, ten cars ahead. He got going," the spotter warned. Mikey then went three-wide and was cleared after Brian Vickers' #25.
On lap 202, Greg Biffle took the lead. Mikey fell two spots. He complained that the air in the right front made it so loose, he could spin out just about anywhere.
Jimmie Johnson retook the lead a couple laps later.
"Yeah, we had a right front tire going down on that last run, Mike," Baldwin Jr admitted. "We screwed up here."
"Yeah, putting air in the right front made me looser," Mikey complained.
"Yeah, 10-4 man. 10-4."
"19 slow up top," the spotter warned on lap 211. "Clear."
Four laps later, he was cleared around Terry Labonte for position. The #55 was 37th.
"Next car behind you is the leader," the spotter warned on lap 219. "Still got a straightaway.
"Five back to the 48," the spotter added on lap 222. He said there was still half a straightaway between the leader in the #48 and the #16. Johnson lapped Mikey on lap 224.
"All right, let's come in here," Baldwin Jr directed. He wanted to put in a full rubber and put in some other adjustments. The spotter noted a little smoke in the right front.
"Work on that fender too, guys," Baldwin Jr said to the team. Mikey hit pit road, and spent 54.5 seconds there. He was now four laps down in 39th. He picked up a spot a couple laps later when Chad Chaffin made a stop.
On lap 237, Mikey was told that the leader was about a half straightaway back. The #55 was two and a half miles per hour slower than leader Johnson.
"That is the leader behind you. Five back, all by himself. All by himself. Clear, all clear. We've got the 24 real slow on the apron in Turn 1. Green is still out; no yellow."
Lap 240 saw Mikey fall a fifth lap down. Meanwhile, Jeff Gordon's #24 dropped through the ranks. Johnson was five seconds ahead of Jeff Burton in second.
Passing Terry Labonte on lap 243 moved Mikey into 37th. The #24 team pushed Gordon's car to the garage. With Gordon's departure, the #55 gained another position.
"This 31 is P2, five back," warned the spotter on lap 245. "Outside, by himself."
"15 laps left," said the spotter on lap 253. "15."
"You've lost, like, six-tenths of a second behind this guy," Baldwin Jr said on lap 255, referring to Robby Gordon. "I know you're trying. I'm just giving you information."
When Mikey tried to pass, he was told he had a car on the bottom. Lead lap cars were coming through. Baldwin Jr told the crew to get ready, just in case they did stop.
The #55 had an issue with tire rub again.
"It's about what it was last time," the crew chief noted. "You be the judge, Mike. No smoke. You'll have seven laps left at the line. Seven."
Kasey Kahne spun on his way to pit road and was in the grass on lap 263. He ran out of fuel and needed to be pushed by his crew down pit road. Johnson also had to pit, giving the race lead to Tony Stewart. Mikey was finally cleared by Robby Gordon.
"Two laps left. Two," his spotter said.
"20 slow on the bottom, centre of the back. He's out of fuel. That is the leader. The leader has not taken it yet. The leader has not taken it. He just took the checkered."
Tony Stewart won.
"He took the checkered behind us, right, Tommy?"
"Not sure. All right, that's it, bud."
Mikey finished four laps down in 36th. Tony Stewart won. He was out of fuel and needed a push from teammate Denny Hamlin. The #55 pulled onto pit road with the rest of the field, and he went to the garage.
Watch Mikey next week at Talladega! Coverage of the Nextel Cup's UAW-Ford 500 will start at 1:30pm ET on NBC. The Busch Series is off next weekend.
