Date: Oct. 27, 2013
Event: Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 (Round 33 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (.526-mile oval)
Winner: Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)
SHR Finish:
Danica Patrick (Started 41st, Finished 17th / Running, completed 499 of 500 laps)
Mark Martin (Started 21st, Finished 36th / Running, completed 455 of 500 laps)
Ryan Newman (Started 17th, Finished 38th / Running, completed 432 of 500 laps)
SHR Points:
Ryan Newman (12th with 2,188 points, 106 out of first)
Danica Patrick (28th with 592 points)
Tony Stewart / Mark Martin (not applicable)
Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet SS, led the three-car Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) contingent Sunday at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway by finishing 17th in the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
Patrick rallied from a tough start to the weekend, which began when she crashed her primary racecar in practice Friday. Patrick started 41st using her backup racecar and methodically worked her way to the front and stayed out of trouble to log her eighth top-20 of the season. Patrick, who is competing for Rookie of the Year honors against Ricky Stenhouse Jr., finished 14 spots ahead of Stenhouse, who placed 31st.
Mark Martin, interim driver of SHR’s No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet SS as he subs for the injured Tony Stewart, finished 36th. Martin was running 14th when he was collected by a spinning Kurt Busch on lap 204 that inflicted heavy damage to the right-front corner of his Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevy. The crew made repairs and sent Martin back onto the racetrack, 45 laps down.
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 State Water Heaters Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 39th. Newman ran as high as third before being tagged by Kevin Harvick on lap 319. The contact sent Newman backward into the turn one wall, causing extensive damage that sent Newman to the garage for lengthy repairs. He eventually returned to the track, 68 laps down.
Jeff Gordon won the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 to score his 88th career Sprint Cup victory, his first of the season and his eighth at Martinsville. His victory clinched the 2013 manufacturer’s title for Chevrolet, the brand’s 37th in the Sprint Cup Series and 11th in a row.
Matt Kenseth finished .605 of a second behind Gordon in the runner-up spot, while Clint Bowyer, Brad Keselowski and Jimmie Johnson rounded out the top-five. Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Greg Biffle and Jamie McMurray comprised the remainder of the top-10.
There were 17 caution periods for 111 laps, with six drivers failing to finish the 500-lap race.
Newman is representing SHR in this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and entered the seventh race of the 10-race Chase 11th among the 13 Chase drivers, 72 points behind Chase leader Johnson. Newman leaves Martinsville in 12th, 106 points behind Chase leaders Kenseth and Johnson, who are tied for the point lead.
With three races remaining before a champion is crowned after the season finale Nov. 17 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the top-13 drivers competing for the title rank as follows:
1. Matt Kenseth (2,294 points) +1 position
2. Jimmie Johnson (2,294 points) -1
3. Jeff Gordon (2,267 points, -27) +2
4. Kevin Harvick (2,266 points, -28) +/-0
5. Kyle Busch (2,258 points, -36) -2
6. Clint Bowyer (2,239 points, -55) +2
7. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2,238 points, -56) -1
8. Greg Biffle (2,236 points, -58) -1
9. Kurt Busch (2,219 points, -75) +/-0
10. Carl Edwards (2,218 points, -76) +/-0
11. Joey Logano (2,209 points, -85) +1
12. Ryan Newman (2,188 points, -106) -1
13. Kasey Kahne (2,170 points, -124) +/-0
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule – the eighth race of the 10-race Chase – is the AAA 500 Nov. 3 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. The race begins at 3 p.m. EST, with live coverage provided by ESPN beginning with a pre-race show at 2 p.m.
