David 14th in California Busch race by Kellyanne Lynch 24 February 2007 David Reutimann got a top fifteen finish in the Stater Brothers 300, today's Busch Series race at California Speedway. His #99 Michael Waltrip Racing Aaron's Camry crossed the stripe 14th. The race began in the day and ended at night. Although the sun was shining through clear skies at the start, the air temperature was 59 degress with a 2 MPH wind. The command to start engines came at 3:38pm local time, and the green flag waved at 3:50pm. Toyota driver Dave Blaney led the field and maintained that spot while David took the green from 15th. NASCAR brought out the first caution during lap 2, following Kertis Davis' independent spin. Eric McClure spun in the smoke. Racing resumed on lap 6 with Blaney in the lead. David was 13th, but he lost a spot to Paul Menard's #15 one lap into the run. On lap 10, he passed Scott Riggs's #9. Jeff Burton took the lead on lap 16, passing along the inside. Within the next several laps, David slipped to 23rd. He moved up two spots for 19th on lap 25. Debris in Turn 2 led to the second caution one lap later; Brad Keselowski received the free pass. Meanwhile, David was up to 18th. He and the rest of the field pit under yellow, and Burton was the first driver back on track. Burton led the lap 31 restart, but Kyle Busch dropped inside immediately and took the lead. David was 24th. Lap 35 saw David pass Scott Riggs and Denny Hamlin, but he lost a position to Steve Wallace the next time around the track. Hamlin moved David back to 24th on lap 42, but he regained 23rd one lap later. Steve Wallace's drop on lap 47 allowed the #99 to pick up another positon. Kevin Harvick pit on lap 51 with a right rear flat. The #33's four-tire stop advanced David to 21st. The third yellow came on lap 57 for McClure, who ran over debris and blew a tire. Davis received the free pass, and cars pit under the caution. Burton was the first driver back on track. Lap 62 saw the restart. Burton led, and David rode 19th. Passing David Ragan and Joe Nemechek moved David up to 17th one lap into the run. He was up to 15th on lap 66 after getting around Jason Leffler and Juan Pablo Montoya. Kyle Busch got Jeff Burton loose, causing the leader to slip and allowing Matt Kenseth to take the lead on lap 67. Two laps later, David was 14th after he'd passed Jeff Green's #28. The sun had set, and the track had cooled. The yellow flag waved for the fourth time on lap 73 after Steve Wallace spun through a turn. Wallace's #66 was called back into the pits for speeding. Kevin Harvick's #33 received the free pass. Racing resumed on lap 78 with Kenseth leading and David in 14th. Keselowski spun his tires at the front of the field and lapped, and he slid back. Kyle Busch was all over the leader's rear fender. One lap into the run, David got around Reed Sorenson for 13th. He lost the spot to Denny Hamlin on lap 87. The fifth caution came just after the pass. Jason Leffler, Kenny Wallace, and Juan Pablo Montoya were going three-wide when Leffler moved up into Wallace; he thought his #38 had cleared Wallace's #25. Leffler turned across the track and hit the wall nose-first, and Montoya T-boned him. Cars pit under yellow, and Joe Nemechek was the first driver back on track. Kevin Harvick and three other drivers didn't make stops and held the first four spots. Brent Sherman received the free pass. Bobby Hamilton Jr spun on the lap 94 restart, drawing the sixth caution. Steve Wallace received the free pass. Lap 98 saw the restart. Harvick led, and David was 19th. One lap into the run, the #99 passed Reagan Smith's #4 for position. Smith rallied back and passed David on lap 100, but David regained 18th when Mike Wallace slid back one lap later. Lap 103 saw David move into 16th. Denny Hamlin, Jeff Green, and David Stremme all got around the #99 on the next circuit; David was now 19th. By now, Jeff Burton was leading. David moved into 18th on lap 107 by passing Jeff Green. On lap 113, he went three-wide with Shane Huffman and Stephen Leicht but remained in 18th. On lap 121, Paul Menard dropped off the pace, and David passed him. The yellow flag waved for the seventh time that lap when Menard's #15 began smoking. Green returned on lap 125. Jeff Burton led, and David was 16th. Matt Kenseth ran side-by-side with the leader for a couple laps before taking the top spot on lap 129. Meanwhile, David passed Jamie McMurray for 15th. The eighth caution came on lap 131 when Sam Hornish Jr got loose under JJ Yeley's #1 and lost his rear bumper cover. Yeley received the free pass. The field saw the restart on lap 135. Kenseth led, and David was 15th. Five laps into the run, McMurray's #37 passed the #99, but David got back around him on lap 142. Two laps later saw him get around Scott Riggs for 14th. Kenseth went on to win the race, while David finished 14th. Watch Michael Waltrip Racing tomorrow as David and Dale compete in the Auto Club 500! Coverage of the Auto Club 500 at California Speedway begins Sunday at 3:00pm ET on FOX.