Blown Tire Ruins Sold Run for Ergon Team

OVERVIEW

posted on May 24, 2008

Mansfield, OH (May 23, 2008) – Another solid run for the #15 Ergon race team came to a premature end in this week’s Ohio 250 at Mansfield Motorsports Park. After spending the majority of the race in the top-10, Marc Mitchell had a left-rear tire blow on lap 226. Fortunately, the team was able to quickly service Mitchell’s truck and keep him on the lead lap to collect a 26th-place finish.

Mitchell started the race from the eighth position. It didn’t take long and he was knocking on the door of the top-five. By the time the second caution flag waved, lap 46, the Ergon Tundra was in sixth-place and running lap times faster than the leaders. During the yellow flag, crew chief Doug George opted to give up his track position and bring Mitchell into the pits for service. This was the team’s only scheduled stop of the day. George wanted to make his pit stop before the leaders so that Mitchell could pick up positions as everyone else began pulling off the track to make their pit stops. After filling the #15 truck’s fuel cell to the brim and changing its left-side tires, Mitchell rejoined the field in 19th-place for the restart.

George’s strategy began coming together. As the leaders started coming into the pits for service, Mitchell picked up one position after the other. On lap 107, Mitchell broke into the top-10, and on lap 136, he reclaimed sixth-place. The Ergon Toyota hung strong in the top-10 for the next 50 laps and was poised for the team’s best finish of the season.

Following a caution period on lap 198, Mitchell lined up in eighth-place in between the #18 truck and the #66 truck for the restart. When the green flag waved, the #18 truck experienced a motor failure, jamming up the traffic behind him. With nowhere to go, the #66 truck ducked to the inside of Mitchell and ran into his left-rear quarter panel. Mitchell was able to continue, however the contact damaged the sheet metal over the wheel well.

On lap 226, the jagged edges of the damaged quarter panel caused Mitchell’s left-rear tire to blow. Mitchell had no choice but to give up his seventh-place position and enter the pits. Fortunately it happened during a caution period and the team was able to change the tires and get Mitchell back on track without losing a lap. Mitchell returned to the track in 27th-place, the last car on the lead lap. The race returned to green on lap 244. With six laps remaining in the race, Mitchell only had time to pick up one more position before the checkered flag waved.

“We had such a good truck today, which makes 26th-place seem so disappointing,” said Mitchell after the event. “We had a top-10 in the bag, maybe even a top-five. The truck handled great all day long. I just wish we could have been up front for the last 25 laps.

“I knew we had some sheet metal damage after the ‘66’ truck ran into our quarter panel, but we didn’t see a lot of smoke and the track was still handling fine. It finally let go and I had to come into the pits. It’s just frustrating to have such a good run going and to see it all go away.
“The good news is that we’ve shown that we can run up front each week. I know we’ll be able to do it again in Texas. If we can avoid bad luck there, I’m sure we’ll have a great day.”