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Despite Problems, Almirola Earns Best Finish

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 12, 2007

AVONDALE, Ariz. - Tampa's Aric Almirola had the best run of his young Nextel Cup career in Sunday's Checker Auto Parts 500.

Although he finished only 26th (still the best of his six Cup starts), Almirola ran in the top 15 in Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s No. 01 Chevy before a bad alternator on the 140th of 312 laps caused him a number of problems.

"Aric had his hands full, but he did an outstanding job under adverse conditions," crew chief Ryan Pemberton said. "We had to cut back power inside the car to finish the race. What really hurt was not being able to use the brake blowers like we needed to. The brakes were getting too hot, and Aric was not able to get into the corners with full power."

Before the alternator malfunctioned, Almirola was running in the mid- to high teens and on the lead lap.

"It was a challenge getting through the corners," Almirola said. "Because we didn't have full braking function, I couldn't get after it as hard as I needed to."

Sunday's race was the last Cup start of the season (he is scheduled to run the Busch race at Homestead for former employer Joe Gibbs Racing). He will share DEI's No. 8 Chevy with Mark Martin next year.

FLAME OUT: Polesitter Carl Edwards looked like a serious threat to get his second victory of the Chase, but after leading the first 87 laps, he bowed out with engine failure.

"I don't know what it was, but we don't have many engine failures," Edwards said. "It's too bad to have one on this day."

Edwards won the second race of the Chase, at Dover on Sept. 23. He fell to eighth in the standings.

It was an otherwise good day for Roush-Fenway Racing, as Greg Biffle finished second and Matt Kenseth third.

DRIVER ERROR: Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the fall races at Phoenix in 2003 and 2004, but the way his season has been going, it wasn't surprising that he took himself out with a wreck Sunday.

After working his way up to 13th, Earnhardt broke loose coming out of Turn 2 on Lap 118. The No. 8 Chevy slid sideways onto the infield grass and made heavy contact with the inside wall on the backstretch.

Earnhardt failed to finish for the ninth time in 35 races and for the third time in the past six.

"I just lost it off of Turn 2," Earnhardt said. "We were gaining on our car getting the handling better a little bit. I got up there a little high and it just came around. I tried to save it the best I could, but I couldn't."

FINISH FOR HORNISH: Three-time Indy Racing League champion and 2006 Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish Jr. finished a quiet 30th in his Nextel Cup debut.

Phoenix isn't an easy track, so finishing the race was a small victory.

"The driver is obviously lacking a little bit right now," Hornish said. "I'm still learning as much as I can. I'm just glad I didn't take anyone out or hit anything. We'll go to Homestead with one race under my belt and being a little less of a rookie, I guess."

Hornish is moving to Nextel Cup full time next year and will drive a No. 77 Dodge for Penske Racing. Team owner Roger Penske said he hasn't decided whether the No. 77 car will compete as a new team or be given the owners points (an automatic qualifying berth) from Kurt Busch's No. 2 Dodge.

FOREIGN CASH: With international drivers coming into NASCAR, it's natural that some international sponsorship will follow. Gillett-Evernham Motorsports, which has signed Canadian open-wheel veteran Patrick Carpentier to drive its No. 10 Dodge, is chasing such money.

"I think you'll see us in the next few weeks have a very major international sponsor coming in and another one growing with us," team co-owner George Gillett Jr. said Sunday morning.

Gillett-Evernham already has landed two major American sponsorships for next year - Budweiser for Kasey Kahne and Best Buy for 15 races for Elliott Sadler.

Carpentier made his second Nextel Cup start Sunday and finished 33rd.

HOT LAPS: After winning Friday night's Craftsman Truck Series race and Saturday's Busch Series race, Kyle Busch was bidding to become the first driver to score a Nextel Cup, Busch and truck weekend sweep at one track. He finished eighth in Sunday's race. ... With Jimmie Johnson's victory Sunday, Hendrick Motorsports has won more than half of the 2007 races (18 of 35). Johnson has 10 wins, Gordon six, and Busch and Casey Mears one each. "I think that's a cool stat for Hendrick Motorsports," said Johnson's crew chief, Chad Knaus. ... Sunday's grandstand seating at Phoenix International Raceway was sold out.

Tony Fabrizio

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