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ALL ABOUT ODDS - RED BULL POST-RACE NOTES
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In a city that is all about betting and odds, Las Vegas odd's makers should take note of Brian Vickers and the Red Bull Racing Team. They proved this weekend they are a good bet by overcoming adversity and still managing a decent finish of 24th from a not-so-great day.
After starting the race at the back of the field - the No. 83 Red Bull Camry had to fill NASCAR's past champion's provisional spot because it was not used although Vickers qualified 23rd - Vickers was ready to start charging through the field as soon as the green flag waved. He immediately got off to a quick start, passing five cars in the first lap of the 400-mile race. When the first caution flag flew on lap eight, crew chief Kevin Hamlin made the decision to stay out and gain early track position, which earned him 18 valuable spots and Vickers restarted 18th. The field began cycling into the pits for green flag stops starting around lap 50. When a caution for debri came out on lap 68, the No. 83 ended up one lap down due to the field having not fully rotated through the stops. At several points throughout the race, Vickers radioed to the crew that "the car was starting tight after restarts, then slowly getting looser and looser." On lap 224, the No. 5 car of Casey Mears got loose and caused the No. 83 to spin through the grass on the front stretch and onto pit road, blowing the right rear tire and causing minor damage to the splitter. The Bull Crew worked hard to make sure the No. 83 did not go down another lap, and after fully inspecting the car, they found the car to be OK and quickly got Vickers back onto the track.
Despite Vickers and the Bull Crew's best efforts, they were never able to get the coveted lap back and finished the day 24th. The No. 83 team remains strong in the overall Sprint Cup standings, though, and currently holds on to the 13th spot.
+ FREE QUOTE Brian Vickers, driver No. 83: We couldn't catch a break today by not being able to get our lap back. It ended up being an OK points day for us, but the bottom line is we still need to improve. We finally got the car to handle better but it was never consistent. Every time we changed tires it changed the feel of the car. So overall I am not pleased with the finish because I think we had about a 15th place car, but considering the spin and being a lap down most of the race, we will take a top-25 finish."
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